The Legendary Zhuge Liang
by christos200
Summary: This is the story of how the legendary Zhuge Liang, with the help of his loyal friend Chan, manages to always outwit Southland Grand Commander Zhou Yu and Taoist Kung Fu Master Fong Yuen. Reviews will be appreciated quite a lot. Took inspiration about this not only from DW, but also from the 2010 Three Kingdom TV series. Hope you like it.
1. Trying to seduce Zhuge Liang

**The Legendary Zhuge Liang:**

_ South bank of the Yangtze River, Cao Cao's camp _

It is 208 CE. Cao Cao has gathered an 800,000 men strong army and has marched to the south bank of the Yangtze River, in a location known as Red Cliffs. Liu Bei and Sun Quan have allied and with a force of 50,000 men try to stop Cao Cao from taking over the South. But even though they are allies, frictions are already beginning to show up. Zhou Yu, Grand Commander of Sun Quan's forces, jealous of Zhuge Liang's talent and fearing that the latter would become a threat to his lord, Sun Quan, in future, asked Zhuge Liang to make 100,000 arrows in ten days or face execution for failure in duties under military law. Everyone thought that this is an impossible task.

But Zhuge Liang is not a common man. Zhuge Liang had lived as an hermit during his early life, but his fame as a great military strategist led Warlord Liu Bei visit him three times in order to persuade him to join him. Zhuge Liang indeed joined Liu Bei and helped him forge the alliance with Sun Quan against Cao Cao. Zhuge Liang has almost heavenly foresight. So, when Zhou Yu ordered him to complete this task, Zhuge Liang promised that he could complete the mission only in three days.

With help from Lu Su, Sun Quan's military strategist who is a supporter of the Liu-Sun alliance and does not wish to see Zhuge Liang dead, since this would mean the end of the alliance, Zhuge Liang prepared 20 large boats, each manned by a few soldiers and filled with human-like figures made of _straw_ and hay. Near dawn of the third day, when there was a great fog, Zhuge Liang deployed the boats and they sailed towards Cao Cao's camp across the river. Now that they have reached the camp, he orders the troops to beat war drums loudly and shout orders to imitate the noise of an attack. Hearing the noise, Cao Cao's generals send a messenger to Cao Cao's tent.

_"My lord! My lord!" _the man shouts as he rushes into the tent.

Cao Cao is still sleeping. He had a hard day yesterday, because he had to manage the flow of supplies toward his army and to decide if he would follow Pang Tong's chain links strategy or not. Hearing of the voice, he quickly gets up.

_"What is it?!" _Cao Cao, alarmed and fearing an attack, shouts. _  
_

_"A small number of ships are coming towards our camp, sir. The Generals wish to ask you what to do."_

_"I will go inspect the attack myself!"_

Indeed, Cao Cao gets out of his tent and watches the enemy ships. Seeing the great fog, he assumes that this is Zhou Yu's trick to lure his large but inexperienced navy into combat and destroy it. Laughing and very happy that he has seen through Zhou Yu's plan, Cao Cao gives his orders: _"Do not engage. This is a trap. Have all archers to fire arrows at the ships."_

Cao Cao then laughs and says to himself: _"I got you now, Zhou Yu! You think that I do not know military strategy? You think that such simple tricks will work on me? What a great strategist you are!"_

Cao Cao's troops follow his order and soon hundreds of archers fire their arrows at Zhuge Liang's ships. The arrows become stuck in the straw figures, as Zhuge Liang had predicted. The boats change direction when one side becomes loaded with too much arrows so as to restore balance. And so, thousands of arrows are being collected every second. Meanwhile, Zhuge Liang enjoys wine with Lu Su inside the cabin. While Zhuge Liang is excited, Lu Su is not so happy, especially since some arrows penetrate inside the cabin and almost kill them.

_"Brother Zijing (Lu Su's courtesy name)"_ Zhuge Liang, while laughing and drinking wine, says. _"As you see, I was not boasting when I said to Gongjin (Zhou Yu's __courtesy name) that I would bring more than 100,000 arrows in three days."_

_"How did you manage to predict the fog?!" _Lu Su, surprised and startled, asks.

_"A great General, except for formations, must also know astronomy and geography. I saw the stars and I knew that there would be a fog today. That's why I accepted __Gongjin's challenge."  
_

A few minutes later, Zhuge Liang orders the ships to return to the camp. By the time they returned to camp, Zhuge Liang had acquired more than 100,000 arrows and Zhou Yu had no choice but to let him off. However, Zhou Yu does not give up in his quest to kill Zhuge Liang and has thought a plan to kill Zhuge Liang under military law.

_Zhou Yu's tent_

Zhou Yu, in order to achieve this plan, needs the help of his wife, Xiao Qiao, one of the most beautiful women in China. Her beauty is such that it is said that Cao Cao started this campaign against the Southland only in order to have her. Zhou Yu knows that Zhuge Liang has not seen his wife for quite some time and that she is not as beautiful as Xiao Qiao and plans to use this in order to kill Zhuge Liang.

_"My lady" _Zhou Yu says to his wife. _"As you know, Zhuge Liang has once again outsmarted me. But, if you are willing to help me, I have a plan which will allow me to kill Zhuge Liang."_

_"Why do you always want to kill him? He is our ally and he has helped us many times." _Xiao Qiao, not understanding the strategic plans of Zhou Yu and that he is already thinking of the next day after Cao Cao's defeat, asks.

_"My lady, if we allow him to live, then he will become a threat in the future."_

_"What is your plan?"_

_"I will use your beauty to make Zhuge Liang fall for you. You shall call him in the tent to congratulate him of his success, say that I am not here, and try to make him fall for you. Meanwhile, I will be hiding in the tent, along with General Cheng Pu and several men. When the time is right, I will rush into the tent and with the charge of trying to seduce my wife, I will execute him!"_

_"My husband, will you really use me in this way in order to kill Zhuge Liang? Do you hate him so much?"_

_"You must help me! It is for the greater good of the Southland."_

_"Alright."_

_Zhuge Liang's camp, a few hours later_

Zhuge Liang is sitting in his office, with a book on military strategy on his left hand and his hand fan made of crane feathers on his right hand. He is guarded by eight bodyguards. Suddenly, a messenger from the Southland rushes into Zhuge Liang's camp. When he sees him, Zhuge Liang thinks _"what trick has Zhou Yu prepared this time?" _and sighs.

The man bows before Zhuge Liang and shouts _"Sir, Lady Qiao wants you to come to the Grand Commander's tent."_

Zhuge Liang thinks about it for a few second. _"Lady Qiao wants me?" _he asks himself. He then replies to the messenger: _"I will be coming in a moment."_

_A few minutes later, Zhou Yu's tent_

When Zhuge Liang enters Zhou Yu's tent a few minutes later, he finds a table prepared for him with wine and some dishes. He also finds Xiao Qiao, dressed in a beautiful blue dress, waiting for him. Zhuge Liang is surprised and says to himself inside his mind: _"This time, Zhou Yu outsmarted me. I have not idea what this fellow is planning and why I have been called here."_

_"Master Kongming __(Zhuge Liang's courtesy name), why don't you sit and have some wine?" _Xiao Qiao asks._  
_

Zhuge Liang sits and drinks a bit wine.

_"Where is __Gongjin?" _Zhuge Liang, curiously, asks._  
_

_"He is not here. I asked you to come here, not him."_

_"Why?"_

_"To congratulate you for completing your mission."_

_"Thanks..." _Zhuge replied, although it sounded more like a question than an answer.

_"I am sure that you know of how good I am at playing Zither."_

_"Yes, I've heard of it."_

_"Let me play a tune for you."_

_"No...no. No need to trouble yourself."_

_"No, I do not trouble myself at all."_

Once Xiao Qiao starts playing her Zither, the music almost bewitches Zhuge Liang, who closes his eyes and enjoys the wonderful sound of the music. Meanwhile, Zhou Yu, who is hiding along with twenty men and Cheng Pu behind the tent, cannot help but laugh. He has at least outsmarted Zhuge Liang and now it is his time to take revenge for all the humiliations he has suffered. Meanwhile, Zhuge Liang starts to understand Zhou Yu's plans, but he then dismisses it as his imagination, as he knows that Zhou Yu loves Xiao Qiao very much and would never use use her like this. After a few minutes, Xiao Qiao stops playing her Zither and pulls out a long sword.

_"Now" _she says _"allow me to show you my swordplay."_

Xiao Qiao's swordplay is one of the best Zhuge Liang has ever seen, as Xiao Qiao is very skilled in the sword and her beauty adds an unique aura to her moves. As Zhuge Liang watches her and is bewitched by her wonderful sight, Lu Su rushes inside the tent shouting _"Brother __Kongming, I need some advise on the __'Eight Docked Gates' formation."_

Zhuge Liang looks at Lu Su in a way that is like him saying _"Why did you have to come now?!"_

_"My lady, please excuse me. I will be back in a moment." _Zhuge Liang says, with a smile in his face, and then leaves with Lu Su.

After they walk some distance, Zhuge Liang decides to asks Lu Su why he came in the tent.

_"Brother __Zijing, you were not rushing into the tent in order to talk with me about military strategy, right?"  
_

_"Yes. I rushed-" _

Before Lu Su can continue, Zhuge Liang interrupts him.

_"Let me guess. Zhou Yu uses his wife as a bait to lure me in his trap, right?"_

_"Yes! You knew already?"_

_"I had thought of it, but I dismissed it as I had not thought that Zhou Yu would go so far in order to kill me."_

_"Now, better leave. If you are killed, the Liu-Sun alliance will collapse and Cao Cao will take over the entire world."_

_"Why leave when I can humiliate Zhou Yu in front of his men and gain the admiration and trust of Southland's soldiers?"_

Zhuge Liang runs back to Zhou Yu's tent. There, he finds Xiao Qiao, nervous, waiting for him.

_"My lady, I hope I have not let you wait for too long."_

_"No, Master __Kongming."_

Xiao Qiao puts up a smile and comes close to Zhuge Liang.

_"Master, I am sorry for being frank, but from the first moment I saw you, I fell in love with you. I want to be with you for the rest of my life."_

Then, there is silence for a moment. Xiao Qiao's touches Zhuge Liang's hands, who is trembling, or at least shows this impression in order to make Zhou Yu more happy and sure of his success, so when he fails, his failure will pain him even more. Zhou Yu prepares for his charge inside his tent and cannot wait for Zhuge Liang's reply. He is sure that this time, he has tricked Zhuge Liang.

_"My lady!" _Zhuge shouts (in order for everyone to hear him) with tears in his eyes. _"I can never do something like this to __Gongjin. He is the most brilliant strategist alive, a great man that I admire and a friend, for whom I would give my life. I admire him more than anyone else in this world and I view him as a brother. I can never do anything to hurt him. Also, I do not believe that he really hates me and wants me dead. Those are just rumors spread by Cao Cao to present my good brother as a man who puts petty revenge over the good of the Southland! This is done by Cao Cao in order to break our alliance and take over the entire realm. But my good brother __Gongjin is not such a man who would put petty revenge above the defence of Southland! I am sorry, but I have to leave."_

When Zhuge Liang leaves, Zhou Yu's face is almost red because of his anger. He enters the tent and shouts _"Damn you, Zhuge Liang!". _He then spits blood and falls on the ground. Cheng Pu, who is near Zhou Yu, says _"Zhuge Liang is a honorable man and would not pose a threat to us. You should really focus on Cao Cao, who is our real enemy, rather than trying to get a petty revenge."_

_Zhuge Liang's camp, a few hours later_

A few hours later, Lu Su visits Zhuge Liang to tell him about Zhou Yu's condition.

_"Brother __Zijing, did Zhou Yu learn his lesson?" _Zhuge Liang asks._  
_

_"No. Once he entered the tent, he spit blood and collapsed. He then had a fight with Xiao Qiao, because she said that you are an honorable man and he should not try to kill you, and had her send back to their home. As you predicted, now most Southland men do not understand Zhou Yu's hate and want him to stop trying to kill you and focus on Cao Cao. However, Zhou Yu still wants to find a way to outsmart you."_

_"Haha! Zhou Yu, it seems, will never change."_


	2. The Five Taoists Killers

_South bank of the Yangtze River, Zhou Yu's tent_

Zhou Yu (_courtesy name: Gongjin_) is reading some military reports on his desk. As the Grand Commander of the Southland, he is responsible for leading the Southland army against Cao Cao, who has marched to Red Cliffs with an army of 800,000 men and with thousands of warships. Zhou Yu's lord, Sun Quan, Master of the Southland, has allied with Imperial Uncle and Han loyalist Liu Bei against Cao Cao. The coalition forces number to only 50,000 men, not even 1/10 of Cao Cao's army. However, Zhou Yu is confident of his skills and believes that he will be able to defeat Cao Cao. But what worries Zhou Yu right now is not Cao Cao and his huge army, but rather one man: Zhuge Liang (_courtesy name: Kongming_).

The famous strategist of Liu Bei, who is said to have heavenly foresight and knows astronomy, geography, thousands of formidable battle formations and poetry, worries quite a lot Zhou Yu, because he believes that if Cao Cao is defeated, Zhuge Liang will prompt Liu Bei into taking over Jing province, which Sun Quan wants. So, while contributing the least in the alliance, Liu Bei will gain the most. Another reason why Zhou Yu hates Zhuge Liang is that he cannot accept that there can be a greater strategist than him and thus cannot tolerate how Zhuge Liang outwits him every time.

Zhou Yu has already tried to kill Zhuge Liang twice by using military law. The first time, he ordered Zhuge Liang to gather 100,000 arrows in ten days or face execution for failure in duties under military law. However, Zhuge Liang used a smart trick to gather 130,000 arrows in only three days. The second time, Zhou Yu used his wife, Xiao Qiao, to seduce Zhuge Liang, in order to execute him on charges of trying to seduce the Grand Commander's wife. But Zhuge Liang outwitted once again Zhou Yu.

As Zhou Yu is thinking of a way to get Zhuge Liang killed, Xiao Qiao rushes into the tent. Zhou Yu is surprised. After the second attempt to kill Zhuge Liang had failed, Xiao Qiao dared to say good words for him in front of her husband and urged him to make peace with Zhuge Liang. So, he ordered her to return to their home. Zhou Yu had never liked the idea of Xiao Qiao coming with him to the military camp in the first place and only agreed to this because she begged him. So, now that Xiao Qiao rushes inside his tent, Zhou Yu is very surprised.

_"What are you doing here?!"_ he asks her. _"You are supposed to be traveling to our home."_

_"My husband, you can do anything you want to me. You can hit me, you can kill me, but I will not leave by your side!"_ Xiao Qiao cries. _"I do not want to lose you. I am afraid of what will happen to you. Cao Cao has a huge army. So, I want to spend as much time as I can with you. Please forgive me and allow me to be by your side."_

_"Alright, alright."_ Zhou Yu sighs. _"You may stay with me. But you must not interfere about anything that has to do with this...Zhuge Liang!"_

Xiao Qiao bows before her husband and with a smile in her face replies _"Of course, Grand Commander."_

_"Now, leave me!"_

Xiao Qiao leaves the tent and Zhou Yu thinks for a few minutes about how much devoted his wife is. Then, an idea suddenly comes to him. An idea of how to get rid of Zhuge Liang without disturbing the alliance with Liu Bei. At last, he has outwitted Zhuge Liang, or so he thinks. Zhou Yu decides to sent a messenger to inform Lu Su (_courtesy name: Zijing_) to come to his tent.

_A few minutes later_

After a few minutes, Lu Su arrives to Zhou Yu's tent. When he enters his Commander's tent, Lu Su cannot help but ask himself _"What trick has Zhou Yu thought to try and outwit Zhuge?"_. Lu Su understands very well that what Zhou Yu is trying to do is very dangerous. If Zhuge Liang is executed by Zhou Yu, even if this happens in a legal way with Zhuge Liang breaking the military law, it could enrage Liu Bei and mean the end of the alliance. And if the Liu-Sun alliance collapses, then Cao Cao will gain the most, as his opponents will be divided and he will have no difficulty taking over the Southland. But at the same time, Lu Su cannot afford to make his Grand Commander angry and he also realizes that Zhou Yu has a point about Zhuge Liang being a very dangerous man. Zhuge Liang is just too smart for his own good. When Lu Su enters Zhou Yu's tent, he is given a warm welcome by the Grand Commander.

_"Brother Zijing!"_ Zhou Yu says while embracing Lu Su. _"I cannot tell you how happy I am."_

_"Brother Gongjin, why are you so happy?"_

_"I have found a way to both get rid of Zhuge Liang and make sure that Liu Bei will not break the alliance."_

Lu Su is surprised. What plan has Zhou Yu thought that could both kill of Zhuge Liang and not enrage Liu Bei?

_"So, what plan is this?"_ Lu Su asks.

_"I have hired the Five Taoists Killers."_

_"You mean the five Taoist Monks who are very highly skilled in martial arts and swordsmanship and now work as assassins?"_

_"Yes! So, I will have them to assassinate Zhuge Liang and bring his head to Cao Cao. Liu Bei will think that the assassins were sent by Cao Cao and will become enraged. So, not only he will not break the alliance, but he will also fight with more hate against Cao Cao. So, I'll kill two birds with one stone!" _Zhou Yu then starts laughing like a maniac for a few minutes, before Lu Su asks him a very important question.

_"Zhuge Liang is protected by many bodyguards. How will you assassinate him?"_

_"That's not problem. You know his Chief of Bodyguards?"_

_"Yes. You are talking about Jiang, right?"_

_"Yes. He has been bribed by me and will make sure that the Five Taoists will have no problems."_

_"Great plan. Great plan." _Lu Su replies. Lu Su is confused over what to do. From one hand, the plan is ingenious and will get rid of a future danger without threatening the Liu-Sun alliance. But, on the other hand, Lu Su knows that if they are going to defeat Cao Cao, they need Zhuge Liang. While Zhou Yu thinks that he can defeat Cao Cao on his own, Lu Su, without doubting his Grand Commander's truly amazing skills in military strategy, knows that Zhuge Liang will be of great help in the fight against Cao Cao and will maximize the possibilities of the 50,000 men of the allied army defeating the 800,000 men of Cao Cao.

Suddenly, a soldier comes inside the tent and bows before Zhou Yu.

_"Sir!"_ the soldier says. _"Master Kongming wants to see you."_

_"Allow him to come inside." _Zhou Yu replies.

_"Yes, sir."_

Soon, Zhuge Liang comes inside the tent, with his right hand holding his hand fan made of crane feathers.

_"Brother Gongjin!"_ Zhuge Liang says. _"Are you alright? I've heard that last night you vomited blood."_

_"I am alright now." _Zhou Yu replies.

_"Brother Kongming, I want to ask you a question about a song."_ Lu Su, who has at last made up his mind weather he will help Zhuge Liang or not, says.

_"What song?"_ Zhuge Liang asks.

_"Cold the gale blows by the frigid River Yi, the hero sets off, never to return again!"_ Lu Su answers. _"What do you think of this song?"_

_"Well...it is a song that shows the heroism and self-sacrifice of Jing Ke for his state."_

Zhuge Liang then turns to Zhou Yu. _"Brother Gongjin, now that I have seen that you are alright, I will take my leave."_

Zhuge Liang walks out of the tent and keeps thinking about what this song means. Those were words sung by Jing Ke before he departed on a suicide mission to assassinate Ying Zheng, King of Qin state, who later became China's first emperor. _"But what could this mean?"_ Zhuge Liang asks himself. He knows that Lu Su is trying to warn him about something that Zhou Yu plans against him, but he cannot understand what the song means. Then, he suddenly realizes everything: Zhou Yu will sent assassins to kill him! So, Zhuge Liang rushes back to his camp.

_Zhuge Liang's camp, a few minutes later_

Zhuge Liang enters his camp in a hurry and asks one of his bodyguards where the Chief of Bodyguards Jiang is. The soldier replies that Jiang has gone out for a walk and shows to Zhuge the direction he took. Zhuge Liang decides to follow him in secret. Although Jiang has served him for many years, Zhuge Liang wants to be sure that everything is alright. So, he manages to find where Jiang is and secretly follows him. He sees Jiang entering a military tent. Zhuge Liang approaches the tent and listens Jiang reporting to Zhou Yu.

_"Sir!"_ Jiang says. _"Everything is alright. The fool has not suspected anything. You may start the operation today."_

_"Good, very good." _Zhou Yu replies.

_"I will send them late in the night. Once the deed is done, you will be richly rewarded."_

Zhuge Liang was right to suspect Jiang. He has allied himself with Zhou Yu against him. But Zhuge Liang is not a man that can be easily tricked. He returns to the camp and waits for Jiang to come. A few minutes later, Jiang arrives. Jiang finds Zhuge Liang sitting in his office, with a book on military strategy on his left hand and his hand fan made of crane feathers on his right hand.

_"Jiang, my friend!"_ Zhuge Liang says. _"Come! Drink some wine with me."_

_"Do we celebrate something, Master?" _Jiang, surprised, asks.

_"Yes. I have found a plan to destroy Cao Cao's army."_

_"Good! I shall drink to your great plan!"_

Jiang is given a cup of wine, which he drinks. Suddenly, he feels huge pain in his body and is paralyzed.

_"You!"_ he shouts while pointing at Zhuge Liang. _"You poisoned me?"_

_"Ha. You are smart, my friend. Sorry, but your plan to assassinate me has failed."_

Before Jiang can reply, he falls on the ground, dead.

_Zhuge Liang's camp, a few hours later, in midnight_

In midnight, Zhuge Liang's camp is very quite and dark. A perfect place for assassins to kill their victims. So, the Five Taoists Killers are able to sneak easily through the camp. Zhuge Liang's bodyguards also seem to not guard certain entrances, allowing the Taoists to enter easily the camp. The Taoists think that Jiang is helping them. The Five Taoists Killers are dressed with the tradition blue Taoist robes and are armed with a long sword each. The Taoists are able to kill with ease the few bodyguards who notice them and enter the office of Zhuge Liang. There, they find him sleeping on the office. They rush against him and all five of them stab him with their sword. Then, they realize that they are trapped. They had stabbed not Zhuge Liang, but a wooden statue dressed with the clothes of Zhuge Liang. Suddenly, almost out of nowhere, thirty bodyguards surround them and throw fish nets at them. The Taoists are trapped and before they can react, the bodyguards pull out their bows and fire arrows at them, killing all five Taoists.

_Zhou Yu's tent, a few minutes later_

Meanwhile, Zhou Yu is anxious and cannot sleep. He awaits the good news of Zhuge Liang's death. Suddenly, a soldier rushes inside the tent.

_"Sir, Master Kongming wants to see you."_ the soldier reports.

Zhou Yu cannot believe his ears. Zhuge Liang has outwitted him once again! As Zhou Yu is enraged, Zhuge Liang enters the tent.

_"Brother Gongjin."_ Zhuge Liang says. _"Five assassins, most probably sent by Cao Cao, tried to assassinate me. I, however, managed to kill them and so I rushed here to inform you to increase your security, since Cao Cao may have also sent assassins against you."_

_"Brother Kongming," _Zhou Yu replies _"I thank you for informing me about this terrible event. I am most delighted that...that...that...you survived."_

As Zhou Yu says those word, because of his anger, he spits blood. Zhuge Liang immediately helps Zhou Yu sit down.

_"Brother Gongjin!"_ Zhuge Liang shouts. _"Are you alright? I know that this attempt on my life should have shocked you, as we are like brothers and you care about me, but you should not be so upset. Your health is more important than my safety. Try to be less upset about this event."_

_"I...will try to be less upset."_

_"Well, now excuse me, but I have to leave."_

When Zhuge Liang leaves the tent, Zhou Yu shouts _"I hate you, Zhuge Liang!"._ Once again, the legendary Zhuge Liang has outwitted Zhou Yu.


	3. Cao Cao's fatal mistake

_South bank of the Yangtze River, Cao Cao's camp_

Cao Cao has finally made his decision. He will adopt Pang Tong's chain links strategy. Cao Cao is Chancellor of the Han Dynasty, although the Han Emperor is merely his puppet. He has defeated almost all Warlords and his only enemies are Liu Bei and Sun Quan. So, in 208 CE, Cao Cao gathered an 800,000 men strong army and marched to the south bank of the Yangtze River, in a location known as Red Cliffs. Although his army is strong and numerous (the Liu-Sun alliance has only 50,000 men), it has not fighting experience in the Southland terrain, not to say that almost 300,000 of those men were serving under Liu Biao (whose son surrendered to Cao Cao), and their loyalty is questionable.

Also, Cao Cao's navy, although outnumbering by far the Allied Navy, has no naval battle experience at all, all sailors are newly recruited and most of the ships were created at Red Cliffs. In contrast, the Liu-Sun soldiers, although only 50,000 men, know of the terrain of the Southland, are very well trained, have long battle experience and undying loyalty to their leaders. Also, the Southland navy is the best in all of China, is experienced and is very well led by able Admirals. Although Cao Cao is very confident and believes that victory is in his grasps, he knows that his troops have no experience in naval battles. So, when a strategist named Pang Tong advised him to link his huge navy with chain links, thus turning Red Cliffs from a naval battle to a land battle in which his soldiers have much experience, he adopted the plan. After hearing Cao Cao's decision, General Wang Jong decides to go to his tent and advise him to retreat. When Wang enters Cao Cao's tent, he bows before his lord.

_"Your excellency!"_ Wang says while bowing before Cao Cao.

_"Wang, my friend, what do you want?"_ Cao Cao, who sits in his office and looks at some military reports, asks.

_"I want to ask you to retreat or at least reconsider your decision of adopting the chain links strategy of Pang Tong."_

_"Oh! Why should I do that?"_

_"Well, my lord, we may have a huge army, but it has no battle experience in the Southland terrain and 300,000 of our men are of questionable loyalty. Also, our navy is weak. Using our ships to make this battle from a naval to a land one might not work __either."_

_"My friend, there is not need to be so worried. I was able to crush Yuan Shao's 700,000 men strong army with just 70,000 only a few years ago, at the battle of Guandu. If I could defeat 700,000 men with just 70,000, why should I be afraid of 50,000 men when I have 800,000?"_

_"That's why I am afraid. Having a too large army can bring disaster. The best example of this is Guandu. You may think that your numbers guarantee your victory, but just like you were able to defeat Yuan Shao, Zhou Yu and Zhuge Liang may be able to beat you. Do not repeat the same mistakes as Yuan Shao."_

_"Ha! I think that you worry too much. My army has lot of battle experience!"_

_"But it has not battle experience in the Southland terrain."_

_"Still, battle experience is battle experience. The Liu-Sun alliance is doomed."_

_"My lord, I hope that you were not offended by my cautiousness."_

_"Of course not. You have served me for many years and I know that you advise me because you really want to protect me. But...I believe that you worry too much. Relax a bit. Soon, you shall lead an offensive that will crush the Allies and unify China under one rule."_

_"I have to take my leave, my lord."_

General Wang leaves Cao Cao's tent. He still worries very much and feels that something is not right. He can predict that a huge disaster is coming upon his lord's army, but he cannot persuade him to retreat. So, he will have to suppress his feelings and follow his lord's orders.

_Zhou Yu's tent_

Meanwhile, Zhou Yu (_courtesy name: Gongjin_), Grand Commander of the Southland, has invited Zhuge Liang (_courtesy name: Kongming_), Liu Bei's strategist, to his tent, to discuss what will be their strategy to counter Cao Cao's army. Zhuge Liang arrives in the tent wearing his robe and holding a hand fan made of crane feathers.

_"Brother Gongjin."_ Zhuge Liang says. _"Have your spies got any news from Cao Cao's army."_

_"Yes!" _Zhou Yu replies, with a smile in his face and a confident look. _"Cao Cao has decided to turn this from a naval into a land battle and so he chain linked his navy. You know what this means?"_

_"If we use fire against his navy...then all five thousands ships he has will be destroyed and his 800,000 men strong army will be burned alive and be annihilated!"_

_"Exactly!"_

_"Good. Now, I must leave in order to prepare my men and write a message to my lord about the current situation."_

Zhuge Liang leaves Zhou Yu's tent delighted. At last, Cao Cao has made a mistake. And in great battles like this, the winner and the loser are determined by who will be the one to make the first mistake. In this case, Cao Cao has made the mistake and so Zhuge Liang knows that the battle is as good as won. For him, Cao Cao has already been defeated and he goes to his camp not only to prepare his men, but to also prepare the plan for the next day after Cao Cao's defeat. Zhou Yu also has the same belief and also prepares plans for how the army will move after Cao Cao's defeat. Zhou Yu, although outwitted by Zhuge Liang, remains one of the greatest strategists in all of China. Judging him only from the results of his scheming against Zhuge Liang gives the wrong impression. Zhou Yu is an excellent commander in both tactical and strategic level. Both Zhou Yu and Zhuge Liang, now that they are sure of Cao Cao's defeat, understand that after the Han Chancellor's defeat, they will become enemies. So, in their respective plans for the future, they already make up plans of how to face each other.

_A few hours later, on the banks of the Yangtze River (Liu-Sun side)_

Zhou Yu has taken a walk by the Yangtze River with his wife, the beautiful and skilled in swordsmanship and zither, Xiao Qiao. They walk together, remember past moments and laugh. Zhou Yu loves Xiao Qiao more than any other person and wants to spend as much time as he can with her. Unfortunately, his duties as the Southland's Grand Commander do not allow him to spend much time with his wife. That is why when he defeats Cao Cao and unifies the realm (China) for Sun Quan, Zhou Yu plans to resign and live a peaceful life with Xiao Qiao.

_"Do you remember that day when you first heard me playing my zither?"_ Xiao Qiao asks.

_"How can I forget this day?"_ Zhou Yu, laughing, replies. _"My love, soon Cao Cao will be crushed and we shall be able to live together peacefully."_

_"I cannot wait for that day, when we are together alone, without Emperor, Warlords, Cao Cao and...other problems." _Xiao Qiao, after saying Cao Cao, was about to say Zhuge Liang, but knew that this would upset her husband and so did not mention Zhuge Liang's name.

Suddenly, the wind starts blowing from the northwest. Zhou Yu does not speak for a moment. Then, suddenly, he vomits blood and faints. Xiao Qiao, crying, shouts for help. Some soldiers quickly arrive and take Zhou Yu to his tent. Hearing of the news, Lu Su (_courtesy name: Zijing_) rushes into Zhou Yu's tent. There, he find Xiao Qiao crying over Zhou Yu's body.

_"How is he!?"_ Lu Su, very worried and upset, shouts. Not only he knows that if Zhou Yu dies the entire battle may be lost, but Zhou Yu is also his friend. So, he is very grieved about his Grand Commander's condition.

_"He is still alive, but his health is not good."_ Xiao Qiao answers. _"What should I do?"_

_"Well, you should ask Zhuge Liang's help. He is known for having medical skills. Also, he is very intelligent, so he will be able to find a solution."_

_"But..." _Xiao Qiao is afraid that her husband will be very angry if she goes to ask Zhuge Liang's help and she also does not want to see him, because the last time they met, Xiao Qiao tried to seduce Zhuge Liang in order to give an excuse to her husband to kill him.

_"Do it if you want your husband to live!"_

_A few minutes later, Zhuge Liang's camp_

Xiao Qiao rushes into Zhuge Liang's office. There, she finds him sitting in his office, with a book on military strategy on his left hand and his hand fan made of crane feathers on his right hand. Zhuge Liang, seeing her, smiles and says _"My lady, I know that you are in love with me, but I have already told you: I cannot betray my brother Gongjin!"_, joking about her attempt to seduce him.

_"Master Kongming, please do not joke."_ Xiao Qiao replies with tears in her eyes.

_"What is it?"_ Zhuge Liang, worried, asks. _"I am sorry if I have offended you."_

_"No, it is not about your joke that I am crying. It is because my husband is gravely ill."_

_"What happened to him?!" _Zhuge Liang, very worried, shouts. Although he is at odds with Zhou Yu, he knows that if he dies, the battle may be lost and Cao Cao will be able to unify all of China under his rule.

_"We were walking together by the Yangtze River when the wind started blowing from the northwest. Suddenly, he vomited blood and fainted."_

Zhuge Liang, hearing this, starts laughing. Xiao Qiao cannot understand why Zhuge Liang laughs.

_"Master Kongming."_ she says. _"Why do you laugh?"_

_"Take me to your husband and you shall understand."_

Xiao Qiao leads Zhuge Liang to her husband's tent. When Zhuge Liang enters the tent, he sees Zhou Yu lying on his bed. He has regained his consciousness, but he still is very ill. Zhuge Liang approaches Zhou Yu.

_"Brother Gongjin."_ Zhuge Liang says.

_"Kongming..."_ Zhou Yu tries to reply. His voice shows how weak and ill he is.

_"When you were walking with your wife, you must have suddenly realized that in order for the fire attack against Cao Cao's fleet to be a success, the wind must blow from the southeast or else our own fleet would catch fire."_

_"That's right!" _Zhou Yu, regaining his energy, shouts.

_"Well, I have a solution."_

_"What solution?!"_

_"I know Taoist Magic and I can pray for Eastern wind. This magic was taught to me by an old Taoist Monk."_

_"What?!" _Zhou Yu shouts, not believing Zhuge Liang. How can magic exist? Is Zhuge Liang thinking that he is a fool?

_"I can call for an Eastern wind in three days. I only need an altar to be set up for me to use."_

_"If you fail, however, it will prove that you are trying to fool me and I will execute you according to military law."_

_"Alright. I must leave to prepare the ritual."_

When Zhuge Liang leaves, Zhou Yu completely recovers. His worries are gone, since he knows that Zhuge Liang has divine powers and heavenly foresight, so, for agreeing to risk his life, he must be able to call for an Eastern wind. And with that Eastern wind, he will be able to crush the 800,000 soldiers of Cao Cao and gain eternal glory.


	4. Praying for the Eastern Wind

_South bank of the Yangtze River, Zhou Yu's camp_

Zhou Yu (_courtesy name: Gongjin_), knowing that if, during the fire attack against Cao Cao's fleet, the wind blows from the northwest instead of the southeast, the entire attack will backfire and the allied navy will be burned, has agreed to build an altar for Zhuge Liang (_courtesy name: Kongming_) to use Taoist Magic to pray for an Eastern Wind. Indeed, a few days later, a huge altar was constructed, in which Zhuge Liang, dressed in a black robe, bows before Heaven and shouts strange words that no one can understand, like _"Yuiwang Zjiwaeng Klalee asthriga huangjuenswung!"_. This continues for two more days. In the third and final day, Zhou Yu calls his General Ding Feng to his tent. Ding enters the tent and bows before his Grand Commander.

_"What are your orders, sir?"_ Ding asks.

_"Well, I want you to kill Zhuge Liang when the Eastern Wind blows."_ Zhou Yu replies.

_"But, sir, you said that you would execute Zhuge Liang if he failed to call an Eastern Wind, right? So, why kill him if he succeeds his mission?"_

_"If he fails, then I will indeed execute him. But if he succeeds, then I also want him dead, since I will have no further use for him and he will only be a future danger."_

_"I understand, sir!"_

_"By the way, except for your men, I have also hired a Kung Fu master, Hwang Jang Le, Master of the Seven Fatal Fists. If you cannot execute Zhuge Liang, he will!"_

Meanwhile, Zhuge Liang prays in the altar. After praying for hours, he stops bowing to the Heaven, gets up and shouts _"Eastern Wind! I, Zhuge Liang, summon you to help the Han loyalists defeat the traitor and usurper (Note: he means Cao Cao)! Come, Eastern Wind! Blow and let the flames of justice destroy the traitor and restore the glory of the Han Dynasty!"_. Indeed, the wind starts blowing from the southeast. Zhuge Liang managed to summon an Eastern Wind! But this is not magic. In fact, everything that Zhuge Liang said were words he created at the moment. Zhuge Liang knew that an Eastern Wind would come, since he knows how to read the stars and also knows the geography of the area. But, if he had told Zhou Yu about this, then he knew that he would be of no use to Zhou Yu, and so he would sent men to execute him. That's why he pretended to know Taoist Magic, in order to buy time for Zhou Yun, one of the most loyal and able Generals of Warlord Liu Bei, to bring a vessel with which he can escape from Zhou Yu's men.

Zhuge Liang, knowing that Zhou Yu will send men to kill him, once the Eastern Wind starts to blow, runs away from the altar as fast as possible, finds his horse and rides it as fast as it can. He has to find Zhou Yun and his vessel as soon as possible or else Zhou Yu's men will kill him. At the same time, Ding, seeing that Zhuge Liang has already left, takes the 200 fastest horsemen of the entire Southland army and leads them to pursue Zhuge Liang. Zhuge Liang rides outside the camp and in a dirt road. His pursuers follow behind. Zhuge Liang, seeing that his pursuers are too far away, thinks that he has managed to escape. But, suddenly, he finds out that the way to Zhou Yun's vessel is blocked by a carriage. _"I will surely die now."_ he thinks.

_"Come quickly inside the carriage!"_ a woman's voice says. Zhuge Liang finds the voice familiar, but does not know who the woman is. He has no choice but to ride off his horse and enter the carriage. When he enters, he discovers the identity of the woman: she is Xiao Qiao, the wife of Zhou Yu!

Zhuge Liang is very surprised about this. Why would the wife of his archenemy save him from her husband? Although Zhuge Liang does not ask this question, Xiao Qiao, understanding what he is thinking, decides to answer it anyway.

_"You cured my husband."_ she says. _"Thanks to you my husband has recovered and will be able to gain glory and achieve a great victory. So, in order to thank you, I have decided to help you escape from my husband."_

_"My lady, you are just and know how to repay kindness. If only your husband had those two traits..."_

As Zhuge Liang and Xiao Qiao speak, Ding, along with his 200 horsemen, arrives in front of the carriage. _"Who is in this carriage?!"_ he shouts. _"Come out or I will use violence!"_

Xiao Qiao comes out of the carriage and asks with a sweet voice: _"What is it, General Ding?"_

Ding, embarrassed to have talked in such a manner to the wife of his Grand Commander, apologizes: _"I am terribly sorry, my lady. Please forgive me."_

_"It's alright, General."_

_"By the way, have you seen Zhuge Liang riding a horse towards this way?"_

_"Zhuge Liang? I have not seen Zhuge Liang since he came to find out my husband's illness."_

_"Alright. I will take my leave, madam."_

Ding leads his men towards an other path. At the same time, Zhuge Liang is taken by Xiao Qiao near to the place where he had agreed to meet with Zhou Yun. Once they arrive there, Zhuge Liang comes out of the carriage and continues on foot while Xiao Qiao returns back to the camp.

Zhuge Liang walks for around ten minutes in a dirt road when a man appears almost out of nowhere. That man is of old age, with long white hair and beard, blue eyes and dressed in black clothes. Zhuge Liang continues walking towards the location where he has agreed to meet Zhou Yun, the White Monkey, which is beside the Yangtze River, ignoring the old man. However, the old man continues to follow him. This continues for a few minutes, until Zhuge Liang asks the man where he is going.

_"Sir, if you are kind enough, can you tell me where are you heading?"_ Zhuge Liang asks.

_"I cannot tell you where I am heading."_ he replies. _"But I can tell you where you are heading."_

_"Where am I heading?"_

_"To your grave!"_

Suddenly the old man tries to hit Zhuge Liang with his right leg. His movement combines speed, force and agility. Zhuge Liang is barely able to dodge the kick.

_"Impressive!"_ Zhuge Liang shouts. _"May I know your name, sir?"_

_"I am Hwang Jang Le, Master of the Seven Fatal Fists."_

_"I am no pugilist, I am just a scholar. So, it is not fair to fight without setting some rules, right?"_

_"I agree. Tell me what rules you want me to follow! If they are reasonable, I will agree."_

Zhuge Liang, using his hand fan made of crane feathers, creates a large cycle on the dirt road.

_"We shall fight inside this cycle. If you get out of this cycle, you will have to promise me not to pursue me or attack me."_

_"Of course! I am an honorable man and I always keep my promises."_

_"Good. Let us fight!"_

Zhuge Liang and Hwang Jang Le enter the cycle. Hwang attacks first by kicking twice Zhuge Liang on the stomach and then punching his right fist on Zhuge's head. Zhuge Liang vomits some blood and falls to the ground, but he quickly gets up and runs away from the cycle. Hwang pursues him away from the cycle until Zhuge Liang stops and says _"You said you are an honorable man. So, why do you chase me since you got out of the cycle?"_

_"You got out of the cycle first! So, you lost the duel."_

_"You are wrong."_

Zhuge Liang, laughing, replies. _"We've only agreed that if __**you**__ leave the cycle, you will have to let me get away. We never agreed that I cannot leave the cycle. So, you lost and, if you are an honorable man, you will have to allow me to escape."_

_"Alright. Leave!" _Hwang, angry at how he had been tricked, sighs.

Zhuge Liang indeed leaves. But as he walks towards the White Monkey, he vomits some more blood. Zhuge Liang, knowing that the kicks of Hwang had injured him badly, decides to head towards a nearby village, Red Tiger, which is only thirty minutes away from White Monkey. Once he gets some medicine, he will go to his destination and meet with Zhou Yun.

_Cao Cao's camp_

Meanwhile, General Wang Jong enters Cao Cao's tent. He finds Cao Cao reading some military reports. Wang bows before Cao Cao.

_"Sir."_ he says. _"I have some news to report."_

_"What is it?" _Cao Cao replies while continuing reading the military reports.

_"Our spies bring news about Huang Gai."_

Wang is talking about the Southland General Huang Gai. An old and respected General, he criticized and insulted Zhou Yu four days ago, which led to being punished with 100 strokes. Angry over this punishment, which almost crippled him, Huang Gai send a letter to Cao Cao, expressing his willingness to defect over to Cao's side. Cao Cao suspected a ruse, and so he send Cai Zhong and Cai He, two spies, in Zhou Yu's camp.

_"What news?"_ Cao Cao asks, throwing away the military reports.

_"He will indeed defect to your side, sir. It is not a ruse."_

Cao Cao starts laughing and clapping.

_"Excellent! Excellent!"_ he shouts. _"With such an old and respected Southland Commander joining my side, the faith of the Southland army to Zhou Yu will shrink and his army will collapse! Victory is guaranteed."_

_Zhou Yu's tent_

Meanwhile, Ding returns to the Southland camp and heads towards Zhou Yu's tent. When he enters the tent, Zhou Yu embraces him, laughs and shouts _"Zhuge Liang is dead! Zhuge Liang is dead! Zhuge Liang is dead!"_

Zhou Yu has never been so happy in his entire life. At last, he has proved that he is smarter and better than Zhuge Liang. At last, he has outwitted him. At last, he has taken revenge for his previous humiliations. At last, he has succeeded in his quest to kill his archenemy. At last, he can have peace in his heart.

_"Sir..."_ Ding says slowly, afraid of Zhou Yu's reaction.

_"What is it?"_ Zhou Yu, smiling, says.

_"Zhuge Liang...is...is"_

_"Is dead!"_

_"Not exactly..."_

Zhou Yu becomes enraged and shouts _"What?!"_

_"He...somehow managed to escaped."_

Zhou Yu starts crying and shouts _"Why can I never outwit this man? Why? Why? Why, O Heaven, do you punish me in such a way? Why?!"_

Zhou Yu, because of this emotional shock, vomits blood and collapses to the ground. At the same time, Xiao Qiao, who has returns to the Southland Camp, enters her husband's tent. Seeing him lying on the ground, she rushes towards him.

_"How are you?"_ she cries.

_"I...I...Zhuge...Liang!"_ Zhou Yu, barely able to speak, says.

_"Can you not just forget about him and move on?"_

Ding, seeing that Zhou Yu has regained his senses, reports to him of an other issue, mainly because of his fear of being punished. _"Sir."_ he says. _"When I was pursuing Zhuge Liang, he disappeared in the same road where lady Qiao's carriage was."_

_"What?!" _Zhou Yu shouts, realizing what Xiao Qiao did. _"Did you betray me!? Did you?! Did you?!"_

_"My husband."_ Xiao Qiao replies. _"Zhuge Liang saved you from your illness and brought the eastern wind you asked for and-"_

Before she can finish her sentence, Zhou Yu slaps her and shouts _"How dare you betray your husband?! You will go back to our home!"_

_"Please.."_

_"No! You will leave the camp! If I did not love you so much, I would have killed you for your betrayal."_

Xiao Qiao leaves her husband's tent, crying and devastated. Zhou Yu then shouts _"That's why Zhuge Liang escaped my perfect trap! He had inside help! This is why my brilliant plan failed! It is not that Zhuge Liang is better or smarter than me. It is because my own wife betrayed me!"_


	5. Red Tiger Village

_South bank of the Yangtze River, Red Tiger Village_

After walking for thirty minutes, Zhuge Liang (_courtesy name: Kongming_) finally arrives to Red Tiger Village. Zhuge Liang has to go to that small village in order to get medication, because, while he was heading for White Monkey, the place where Zhou Yun waits for him, Hwang Jang Le, Master of the Seven Fatal Fists, injured him. The Red Tiger Village is a small village with few mostly wooden houses. Very few people live here. One of those few people is Yuan, who is a herbalist. He has a small shop in which he sells medicine. Zhuge Liang arrives to the shop of herbalist Yuan a few minutes later. Once he enters the shop, he sees an old man with long white beard and wearing a black shirt and black trousers. He is Yuan.

_"Master Kongming. How are you doing?"_ Yuan asks.

_"I have been injured in a fight."_ Zhuge Liang answers. _"Do you have any herbs?"_

_"Yes. I have an ointment and some herbs."_

Yuan takes some medicine from his shelf. He then has Zhuge Liang to take off his robe and treats him with the ointment. Once this is done, Zhuge Liang is given some medicine to drink. He then pays Yuan for his effort.

_"Thank you Master Yuan."_ Zhuge Liang says. _"I already feel much better."_

_"No need to thank me." _Yuan replies. _I am just doing my duty as a herbalist."_

Zhuge Liang leaves the shop. However, as he walks on the dirt roads of the Tiger Village, suddenly, Hwang Jang Le appears. He laughs at Zhuge Liang and says _"I've got you now!"_

Zhuge Liang, surprised, asks _"Why are you chasing me? I though you were an honorable man. How can you break your word?"_

_"We've agreed that I will not chase you, but you never said for how long I will not pursue you. Since you said nothing, I assumed that I would not hunt you down for thirty minutes. Now that thirty minutes have passed, I can chase you."_

_"But..."_

_"What? Do you think you are the only one smart enough to play with words?"_

Hwang punches his right fist on Zhuge's face. Zhuge Liang tries to use his hand fan made of crane feathers to block Hwang's attacks, but this has little success. Hwang kicks five times Zhuge's chest, causing him to spit blood and fall on the ground. As Hwang is ready to finish off Zhuge Liang, an old but very muscular man, with long white hair and beard, and dressed with the Taoist blue robe, shouts _"Stop!"_

_"Who are you?"_ Hwang asks.

_"I am Fong Yuen!"_ the old man replies.

_"The famous Taoist Master?"_

_"Yes. Zhuge Liang killed my five disciples. I have to take revenge for them! So, I want to kill him personally."_

_"I am sorry, but I will not let you steal the reward for Zhuge Liang's head from me."_

_"Then, I will have to kill you too!"_

So, Hwang and Fong start fighting. Fong kicks Hwang's head and then punches twice his fists on his stomach. Hwang is pushed back, but he quickly counterattacks with his fists. But Fong, using softness to fight hardness, uses Hwang's momentum to throw him on the ground with a soft but swift move. Hwang gets up fast, only to be punched on the chest by Fong. Fong's fist was slow and soft and did not seem to hurt Hwang at all, much less push him away. Hwang laughs at how soft and weak his opponent's fist was.

_"That's my Ying Yang Fist!"_ Fong boasts.

_"Hahaha!"_ Hwang laughs. _"What a powerful fist!"_

But, suddenly, Hwang spits blood and falls on the ground. He then starts shouting in pain.

_"Ha! My fist damaged your internal organs."_ Fong says. _"The Ying Yang fist combines slowness with fastness and softness with hardness. My fist was soft and did not hurt you externally. But it was also so strong, that it damaged you internally. And, as you should know, internal injuries are far more critical than external ones. You will soon die."_

Fong laughs and then goes to kill Zhuge Liang, only to find that while he was fighting with Hwang, Zhuge Liang escaped. Indeed, Zhuge Liang runs as fast as he can in order to escape from the two able pugilists. He must get out of the village as fast as possible or he will die. Zhuge Liang is able to run to the outskirts of the city and believes that he has escaped and that he is safe now. Wrong! Very wrong! Suddenly, two Taoists Monks, appear almost out of nowhere and pull out their swords.

_"I am Ma!"_ the first Taoist says.

_"And I am Mo!"_ the second Taoist states. _"We are students of the Great Taoist Master Fong Yuen. You have two choices: Either kill yourself or we will have to offend you!"_

_"Well, I prefer the third option."_ Zhuge Liang replies.

_"What is this?"_ Mo asks.

_"To run away!"_

Zhuge Liang starts running away, but Ma jumps in front of him and slices his chest with his sword. Mo also tries to stab Zhuge Liang, but he dodges the sword in the last second. Zhuge Liang then uses his hand fan made of crane feathers to defend against the two Taoists. Indeed, Zhuge Liang's fan manages to do quite well against the swords of the Taoists and blocks their attacks many times, but this does not last long. Ma slices Zhuge's leg and is ready to behead him. But, suddenly, he hears a voice: _"How dare you bully a scholar?"_

Ma and Mo turn around and see a young man, just 20 years old, with short hair, ponytail and green eyes, coming towards them. He is tall and strong, but he is not very muscular. He wears a white shirt, black trousers and black cotton shoes.

_"Who are you?!"_ Mo, very angry and furious, asks.

_"None of your business, damn Priest!"_ the young man shouts.

_"I'll kill you!"_

Mo tries to slice the young man more than twenty times, but he manages to dodge the sword. He then kicks Mo on the head and punches his fists thirty times on Mo's face. His fists move together, are very well synchronized and come one after the other, almost like a chain. Mo's nose is broke and he is pushed back. So, the young man finds the chance to grab Mo's sword from his hands and use it to behead the Taoist Monk. Ma, seeing his brother dead, screams in anger and charges at the man with his sword, but he slices nine times Ma before stabbing him on the stomach, killing him. The man then helps Zhuge Liang, who had fallen on the ground because of his injuries, get up.

_"Thank you, young man."_ Zhuge Liang says. _"What is your name?"_

_"My name is Chan." _the young man answers. _"Where are you going?"_

_"To White Monkey."_

_"Let me take you there."_

_"No need. You have already done far more than needed."_

_"No, I insist."_

So, Zhuge Liang is forced to accept Chan's help. After half an hour's time, the two men arrive to White Monkey, where Zhou Yun (_courtesy name: Zilong_) and his vessel are waiting. Zhou Yun, the loyal warrior of Liu Bei, is dressed in his white armor, made from a multitude of small pieces of steel that are then interlocked and riveted to a leather backing, that covers the torso, the shoulders and the thighs while remaining comfortable and flexible enough to allow movement. Zhou Yun embraces Zhuge Liang.

_"Master Kongming."_ Zhou Yun says. _"Are you alright? I was worrying about your safety."_

_"I am alright thanks to this young man."_

Zhuge Liang replies while pointing on Chan. He then comes close to Chan and, pointing at Zhou Yun, says _"Chan, this is Zilong, one of the best and most loyal Generals of my lord, Imperial Uncle Liu Bei."_

_"I am glad to meet such a hero."_ Chan says to Zhou Yun.

_"Me too."_ Zhou Yun replies. He then turns to Zhuge Liang: _"Master, please board the vessel. We have to go."_

Zhuge looks at Chan for a few seconds and says _"Chan, do you want to come with me? You have great skills and you could help in our cause of restoring the Han Dynasty."_

_"Me?! No, no, no!"_ Chan, laughing, replies. _"I am a carefree man. I want to stay out of those conflicts."_

_"Very well. Goodbye. Take care of yourself." _Zhuge Liang, sad at having lost such a talent, says.

Zhuge Liang and Zhou Yun board their vessel, which begins it's journey. But as the vessel leaves the coast, Fong Yuen appears. He sees the ship leaving and wants to jump on it, since it had not gone too far away, but Chan stops him.

_"Old man."_ Chan says. _"Do you not think that you are too old to try such things?"_

_"Get out of my way or die!" _Fong shouts.

_"I prefer to kill you!"_

Chan tries to kick Fong, but the Taoist Master blocks with ease Chan's attack. He then kicks him trice on the chest. Chan tries to counterattack, but Fong uses Chan's momentum against him and throws him on the ground. Chan quickly gets up, but he is hit on the stomach by Fong's Ying Yang Fist. Chan spits blood and realizes that he cannot fight the Taoist Master. It seems that he is doomed. But, as they were fighting, Zhuge Liang had Zhou Yun turn the ship around and lead it closer to the coast. On top of the vessel, Zhuge Liang shouts: _"Chan, jump on the ship!"_

Chan, using all his internal energy, manages to make an impressive jump and land on the ship. Before Fong can do the same, Zhou Yun instructs the 20 archers, that are on the ship under his command, to fire their arrows at the Taoist Master. Although Fong manages to dodge all the arrows with ease, this bought enough time for the ship to get too far away for Fong to jump on it.

_Cao Cao's camp_

General Wang Jong enters the tent of Han Chancellor (or usurper, according to his enemies) Cao Cao. He bows before his master, who is lying on his bed.

_"What is it?"_ Cao Cao, bored and with a voice that almost shouts _'I am tired and do not want to be disturbed'_, asks.

Wang Jong, understanding his Master's attitude from his voice, despite Cao Cao not telling anything about it, decides to enter immediately to the subject: _"Sir, I have news about Huang Gai."_

Cao Cao quickly gets up and becomes interested in Wang Jong's words.

_"What news do you have?"_ Cao Cao says, anxious over the news about Huang Gai, since the defection of this old and respected Southland General would deal a great blow to his enemies.

_"He will defect tomorrow night. He will come with twenty ships and will have his men carry torches, so we can know he is coming."_

_"Great!" _Cao Cao, laughing, shouts. _"This will be the end of the Liu-Sun Coalition. I will crush them! The day after the defection of Huang Gai, when the morale of the enemy will be low, I will make my offensive, which shall annihilate and exterminate my enemies. And once I have finished off Liu Bei and Sun Quan, I will realize my dream of unifying China under my rule!"_

_Southland camp, Zhou Yu's tent_

Meanwhile, Huang Gai enters his Grand Commander's tent. He bows before his Grand Commander, who is sitting on his wooden office, and tells him of the good news.

_"My Lord."_ Huang Gai says. _"Our spies report that Cao Cao has fallen for our trap. Tomorrow night, I shall burn his navy. And then, our forces, along with Liu Bei's army, shall begin an offensive that will crush the power of the tyrant and restore the Han Dynasty to it's former glory."_

Zhou Yu, laughing and clapping, says _"Good! Good! Everything goes according to my plan. I will be able to gain a legendary victory which shall give me eternal glory and I will go down to history as the world's greatest General. I will prove that Zhuge Liang and Cao Cao are nothing compared to my military genius!"_


	6. The Battle of Red Cliffs

_South bank of the Yangtze River, Liu Bei's military camp, tent of Liu Bei_

After a few hours of sailing, Zhao Yun, Zhuge Liang (_courtesy name: Kongming_) and Chan reached Liu Bei's military camp on the South bank of the Yangtze River. Liu Bei (_courtesy name: Xuande_) is a Warlord and a scion of the Han Imperial House. Along with his sworn brothers, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, he has fought for many years in the name of restoring the Han Dynasty and getting rid of the traitor and usurper Cao Cao. However, he was always being defeated and chased away. After the battle of Changban, in which Cao Cao defeat Liu Bei's forces, Liu Bei was forced to flee in the Southland. Zhuge Liang, with the help of the Southland strategist and diplomat Lu Su, managed to persuade Sun Quan, lord of the Southland, to ally with Liu Bei and help him fend off Cao Cao. So, Liu Bei send Zhuge Liang to help the Southland Grand Commander Zhou Yu in finding a plan with which the Allies could defeat Cao Cao. While Zhuge Liang was with Zhou Yu, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei trained the Liu forces and made them into a well oiled military machine.

After arriving to Liu Bei's military camp, Zhuge Liang and Chan head to the Imperial Uncle's (title given to Liu Bei) tent. When they enter the tent, they bow before Liu Bei, who is sitting in his wooden office, reading some military reports. Liu Bei is a tall man, with ears so large that they touch his shoulders and that he can even see them, long arms that extend beyond his knees, a fair and handsome face, and red lips.

_"Master Xuande, I have returned."_ Zhuge Liang says while bowing to his lord.

_"Who is that young man?"_ Liu Bei asks while pointing at Chan.

_"An able pugilist."_ Zhuge Liang replies. _"He saved my life from a Taoist Priest."_

_"Good."_ Liu Bei says while nodding his head. _"We need such people in order to succeed in our quest of restoring the Han Dynasty!"_

_"Master Xuande."_ Chan says. _"I like to live a carefree life. I do not want to be implicated in politics and wars. So, if you excuse me, I would like to leave."_

_"That's alright." _Liu Bei replies. _"But shall you stay a few more days with us? I need to thank you for saving my strategist and friend, Zhuge Liang."_

_"I will stay for a few more days, since you insist." _Chan answers. _"Now, I will have to take my leave."_

Chan leaves the tent, leaving Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang alone to discuss about the upcoming Battle of Red Cliffs, the battle that will decide the fate of China and the Han Dynasty. If Cao Cao wins, then all of China will be unified under his rule. If the Allies win, Liu Bei will get a chance to restore the Han Dynasty to it's former glory. Restoring the Han Dynasty is the ultimate goal and ambition of Liu Bei. He owes it to his ancestors. He must not let them down. He will either revive the Han Dynasty or die trying.

_"Master Kongming."_ Liu Bei, worried and anxious, says. _"Have you and Zhou Yu found a plan to defeat Cao Cao or are we doomed to fail?"_

_"My lord." _Zhuge Liang replies. _"There is not need to worry. Zhou Yu and I have already devised a plan to crush Cao Cao's army."_

_"What plan?"_

_"Zhou Yu had Huang Gai use a 'self-torture ruse' and pretend to defect to Cao Cao. So, tomorrow night, using this ruse, Zhou Yu shall burn all of Cao Cao's navy. Then, we will go on the offensive. Our forces will outflank Cao Cao's army and set ambushes behind the enemy lines, so when the Cao army retreats, it will be decimated."_

_"Good! The Han Dynasty will at last be restored!"_

_The next night, Cao Cao's camp_

Cao Cao is preparing his men to welcome Huang Gai. He has five thousand troops to be the welcoming party. All those soldiers carry torches, while each hundredth soldier carries a banner of the Cao Army. Cao Cao walks before his soldiers and inspects them. As he walks, he sings the _"Short Song Style (短歌行__)"_, a poem he composed himself:

_"I lift my drink and sing a song, for who knows if life is short or long?  
Man's life is but the morning dew, past days many, future ones few.  
The melancholy my heart begets, comes from cares I cannot forget.  
What can unravel these woes of mine? I know but one drink – Du Kang Wine.  
Disciples dress in blue, my heart worries for you.  
You are the cause, of this song without pause.  
Across the bank a deer bleats, in the wild where it eats.  
Honored my guests I salute, strike the harp! Play the flute!  
Bright is the moon's spark, when can I pick it apart?  
Thoughts of you from deep inside, cannot settle, cannot subside.  
Friends drop by via a country road, the respect they pay really show.  
A long due reunion we fest, sharing past stories we possessed.  
Stars around the moons are few, southward the crows flew.  
Flying with no rest, where shall they nest?  
No mountain too steep, no ocean too deep.  
Sage pauses [from meals] when guests call, so at his feet the empire does fall!"_

Cao Cao repeats this poem two more times. He ends the song with the phrase at the start of the song _"I lift my drink and sing a song, for who knows if life is short or long?"_

Meanwhile Huang Gai, along with forty war ships, sails towards the Cao Camp. He has his soldiers to carry torches, because this is the sign he will give to Cao Cao so that he can recognize him and also because he will use the torches to put on fire the Cao Navy. Once Cao Cao's navy is on fire, the Allies can begin their offensive. When Huang Gai's navy approaches Cao Cao's navy, and the Cao sailors see the torches, everyone in the Cao camp starts celebrating. Especially Cao Cao, who sees in the arrival of Huang Gai a great moral victory over the Allied army, whose morale will deplete after the defection of such an old and respected General. _'What fools!'_ Huang Gai is thinking. And indeed they are fools, as they celebrate their upcoming destruction. They celebrate the death of 800,000 men.

When Huang Gai's ships are close enough to the Cao Navy, Huang Gai gives order to his men to throw the torches on the Cao ships. Indeed, his sailors throw their torches and quickly cover themselves with iron shields. Before the Cao sailors can react, the fire spreads. Cao archers try to fire arrows at the Southland ships, but it is too late. The Cao ships, because they are chain linked, cannot sail away from the ships that are on fire, and so the fire spreads quickly from one ship to another. This is helped by the fact that there is a strong Eastern Wind, as Zhuge Liang had predicted. In the Cao Army, there is confusion and panic. The fire spreads from the ships to the Cao Camp itself. As the Cao soldiers and sailors try to escape the flames, they step on each other, killing thousands of their comrades. Meanwhile, thousand more Cao soldiers are drowned on the water. At the same time, Zhou Yu, along with the rest of the Southland navy, arrives just in time to reinforce Huang Gai, and launches an all out offensive.

While Zhou Yu's ships destroy the Cao Navy, both Liu and Southland land forces cross the Yangtze River, outflank the Cao army and set ambushes on the Cao army's retreat routes. So, when the Cao soldiers try to retreat away from their camp, they fall on one ambush after the other and they are decimated. The Battle of Red Cliffs stops being a battle and becomes a huge massacre. A battle of annihilation. One after the other, Cao Cao's regiments fall. Cao Cao himself, shocked over what is happening, falls on the ground unconscious and only manages to survive because General Wang Jong, with the help of a few loyal Generals and soldiers, carries him on his horse.

Wang, Cao Cao, who is unconscious, three Generals and twenty-five soldiers manage to escape the flames of death in the Cao camp and try to retreat back to Northern China. But Zhuge Liang had predicted every move of Cao Cao and he had Guan Yu to set an ambush on Huarong Trail. Guan Yu, sworn brother of Liu Bei, had served for a short time under Cao Cao and Guan Yu was benefited greatly by Cao Cao during that time. So when Wang and Cao Cao, who had woken up, passed through the Huarong Trail with their few troops, Guan Yu could not bring himself to kill them and decided to let Cao Cao leave, despite knowing that this would anger Zhuge Liang and endanger his life. But even though Cao Cao manages to escape with his life, Red Cliffs had been a unprecedented disaster. From the 800,000 men of Cao Cao, only those three Generals and twenty-five soldiers managed to escape. All others were either killed, captured or deserted the army.

_The next day, Liu Bei's tent_

Lu Su has come to Liu Bei's camp to talk with the Imperial Uncle, Zhang Fei and Zhuge Liang about the destruction of Cao Cao's army, but he was really send by Zhou Yu in order to learn if Guan Yu had killed Cao Cao. Zhou Yu knows that the one who would kill Cao Cao would gain the enmity of the Cao clan. So, the Cao forces would focus on destroying the Liu forces in order to take revenge for their dead leader, allowing Zhou Yu to exploit the situation and unify China for his lord, Sun Quan. After the four men talk for a while, Guan Yu enters the tent.

_"My Lord!"_ Guan Yu says. _"I have failed you. You can kill me."_

_"What?!" _Zhuge Liang shouts. _"You will be executed."_

Liu Bei bows before and Zhuge Liang and says, with tears in his eyes: _"As I have made you my strategist, it is only reasonable that you will have the right to execute anyone who does not do his duty. So, I will not stop you from executing my brother. But I have sworn with my brothers that although we were not born in the same day, we will die in the same day. So, I will kill myself."_

Zhang Fei also bows before Zhuge Liang and says _"I will also kill myself!"_

Lu Su, fearing that the death of Liu Bei would mean the collapse of the Liu forces, also pleads for them: _"Master Kongming, please forgive Guan Yu and give him the chance to redeem himself through doing deeds on the battlefield."_

So, Zhuge Liang decides to forgive Guan Yu. Lu Su leaves the Liu Camp and heads to the Southland camp.

_Zhou Yu's tent_

Lu Su enters his Grand Commander's tent and bows before him. Zhou Yu has a smile in his face. He believes that his plan of letting Cao Cao be killed by the Liu forces is a success and that Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang are doomed.

_"My Lord."_ Lu Su says. _"Guan Yu did not kill Cao Cao."_

Lu Su then goes on to explain what happened to Zhou Yu. Zhou Yu becomes enraged because he knows that this was a trick of Zhuge Liang.

_"He tricked you!"_ Zhou Yu shouts, referring to Zhuge Liang. _"He knew that Guan Yu would spare Cao Cao, so that's why he send him to the Huarong Trail. And then he used your pleading for Guan Yu to be forgiven in order that we do not hold it against him that he allowed Cao Cao to escape. So, he has ruined my plan and I also cannot blame him for Cao Cao's escape, since you have already forgiven them!"_

_A few days later, Gong'an, Zhuge Liang's office_

After the defeat of Cao Cao in Red Cliffs, the Allies have begun an offensive into the Jing province. Liu Bei, with the support of his nephew and son of the previous Governor of Jing Province, Liu Qi, moved into Jing and crushed in three battles the few Cao forces in the area. He then subsequently took over Gong'an, which he made his base of operations in the area. Since a few days had passed, Chan visits Zhuge Liang in order to say goodbye. When he enters the office of the Liu Strategist, he sees Zhuge Liang sitting on his office with a military manual on his one hand and his hand fan made of crane feathers on his other hand.

_"Master Kongming."_ Chan says. _"I have decided to leave."_

_"So, you will not stay? Do you really not want to help us in restoring the Great Han?"_

_"I am sorry, but I like to live a carefree life."_

_"Well, goodbye." _Zhuge Liang, with tears in his eyes, says.

_"Goodbye."_ Chan, also with tears in his eyes, replies.


	7. The Old Beggar

_In the streets of Gong'an_

Chan has at least managed to return to his usual carefree life. _"No more politics and wars for me!"_ he thinks as he walks in the streets of Gong'an. Chan is a man who prefers to enjoy life and have peace than trouble himself with wars over ideals that have no appeal to him. For him, and for many people, the Han Dynasty is already finished. So, why bother and fight for something that has no future?

Those are the thoughts of Chan as he walks. As he walks and thinks about what he will do next, he sees an old beggar surrounded by five men. Four of the five men are muscular and strong, while the fifth one, who seems to be the leader, is fat. The old beggar has a long black beard and hair. He wears teared clothes and he has no shoes. He eats a chicken drumstick.

The fat man approaches the old beggar and shouts _"Hey, old man! You better get out of our way and give us this drumstick or we will have to offend you."_

The old beggar yawns and continues to eat his meal. The fat man, furious, points at the old man and shouts at his men _"Attack him!"_

The first man tries to punch his fist on the old beggar, but he dodges the fist and kicks him on the stomach. As the man shouts in pain, the old beggar puts his chicken drumstick into the man's mouth.

_"Haha!"_ the old beggar laughs. _"Do you like the chicken?"_

The second man tries to kick the beggar, but he grabs the man's leg and hits it on his right knee, breaking it. The third man pulls out a knife and tries to stab the beggar, but he dodges the knife and then kicks the man's stomach. The man lets his knife fall on the ground, because of the kick, and the beggar grabs the knife and stabs the man on the chest. The fourth man pulls out a long sword and tries to cut the beggar's legs, but the beggar jumps on the air, dodging the attack, and when he lands back to the ground, he counterattacks and cuts off the man's right hand, causing him to collapse and fall on the ground. Meanwhile, the first man, who has managed to get the chicken out of his mouth, tries to attack again the beggar, but Chan intervenes and kicks the man's face twelve times, breaking his nose and causing him to fall on the ground. The fat man, who had done nothing so far, seeing his men beaten, tries to flee, but Chan stops him.

_"Hey, fat man!"_ Chan says. _"An apology would not hurt."_

_"How dare you intervene in my business?" _the fat man replies. He then tries to hit Chan, but Chan blocks the attack and then punches his left fist on the man's stomach. The fat man pees on his pants, bows before Chan and, crying, says _"Please, let me go..."_

_"Alright, alright."_ Chan sighs, and the fat man runs away.

Chan then approaches the old beggar and asks _"Are you alright?"_

_"Yes." _the old beggar replies. _"I thank you for your help, but your Kung Fu sucks."_

_"What?!"_

_"Because you were able to defeat two thugs, you think that you are a Kung Fu master?" _the old beggar laughs.

_"My Kung Fu is far better than yours!"_

_"Then let us have a duel."_

_"But you are an old man."_

_"So what?!"_

Chan decides to give to this arrogant beggar a good lesson. He tries to kicks the beggar's chest with his left leg, but the beggar retreats back, causing Chan to kick nothing more than thin air and fall on the ground. The beggar laughs at how Chan fell on the ground, but Chan quickly gets up. He tries to punch his fist on the beggar's face, but he blocks the attack with his right leg. Chan decides to attack with his fist again and so he charges at the old man, but he jumps on the air, causing Chan to fall on the ground once again. The beggar once again laughs, but Chan gets up again and tries to kick the old man once more, only to have his leg grabbed by the man.

_"So, do you surrender or shall I break your leg?"_ the old beggar asks.

_"Please, sir, let me go!"_ Chan, anxious and scared, answers.

The beggar indeed lets Chan's leg and leaves, but Chan tries to kick him on the back. The old beggar, however, dodges the attack and kicks Chan on the stomach. Chan, seeing how skilled the old man is, decides to bow before him and says _"Please sir, accept me as your pupil! I will do whatever you say."_

Before the old man can reply, Chan kowtows before him. The beggar, however, is not willing to have Chan as his student.

_"Young man!"_ he says. _"Leave. I do not take pupils."_

_"Please!"_

_"No!"_

_Half an hour later_

The old Beggar, tired from all this fighting, enters an inn and buys a jar of wine. As he leaves the shop, Chan appears almost out of nowhere and kowtows before him, saying _"Please accept me as your pupil! Please accept me as your pupil! Please accept me as your pupil! Please accept me as your pupil!"_

The old beggar, scared by the sudden appearance of Chan, lets the jar fall on the ground and break. _"You idiot!"_ he shouts, pointing at Chan. _"Because of you, I wasted my wine!"_

_"Please accept me as your pupil. If you do not, I will kowtow until I die."_

The beggar does not seem to care, but Chan kowtows again and again and hits his head on the floor. As Chan's head starts bleeding, the old beggar has no choice but to accept Chan as his student.

_"Alright, alright."_ the old beggar sighs. _"I will accept you as my student."_

_"Yes! Thank you teacher! Thank you teacher!"_

_"What is your name?"_

_"Chan, teacher."_

_"My name is So."_

_"I understand, teacher."_

_"And stop calling me teacher! Just call me Beggar So."_

_"Yes, teach- I meant Beggar So."_

_Chongyang Temple, headquarters of the Great Tao Sect_

Meanwhile, in Chongyang Temple, the great Taoist Master and Abbot of the Chongyang Temple Fong Yuen has called his two best students, Yao Jing and Liao Xiang, to meet him in order to give them a mission. The Great Tao Sect is the largest Taoist Sect in all of China and thousands of Taoist Priests follow the orders of the Abbot Fong Yuen. The Great Tao Sect is respected by all Warlords, as it takes no sides and it is apolitical. Also, many of the Taoist Priests are Kung Fu experts. So, not even Cao Cao dares to mess with them.

Yao Jing and Liao Xiang enter their teacher's room and bow before him. Jing is a tall muscular young man, in his early twenties, with long black hair and a fair and handsome face. Xiang is a man in his late 30's with a scruffy black beard and a face that is neither ugly nor handsome, but more like something between those two. Xiang is an alcoholic, but he is also very ambitious and loves money. He is also a very able speaker. Jing is better than Xiang in both Kung Fu, character and appearance, so Fong Yuen wants Jing to be his heir for the position of the Abbot of the Chongyang Temple. For this reason, Xiang holds a grudge against both his teacher and Jing.

_"My students!"_ Fong Yuen, with hate in his eyes, says. _"Zhuge Liang has not only killed the Five Taoist Killers, but he has also killed other two Taoist disciples, Ma and Mo! I cannot accept this insult! So, I want you to go to Gong'an and assassinate Zhuge Liang. I do not care how, but I want him dead! Zhuge Liang has to die! I hate him! I hate him! I hate him!"_

_"Yes, teacher!"_ both Jing and Xiang reply with once voice. Then, they leave their teacher's room to prepare for their mission. Will Zhuge Liang be able to survive the two best Kung Fu Taoist experts?

_Outside of Gong'an, in a small countryside house_

After walking for a few hours, So and Chan arrive to a small wooden house in the countryside, that seems abandoned and ready to collapse. Outside of the house, Chan sees several wooden poles, as well as many wooden dummies, which have three arms and one leg that represent an opponent's body in various positions and the lines of force the body can give out.

_"Here you will train!"_ So shouts.

_"Yes, Beggar So."_

Beggar So then goes into the house and after a few minutes, he returns with a large wooden pot.

_"Chan, in order to learn Kung Fu, you must suffer."_

_"I am not afraid!"_

_"Good. Do you see this?"_ So asks, pointing at the pot. _"It has boiled water in it. Put your hands into the pot."_

Chan indeed puts his hands on the water. The water is so hot that his hands start to bleed. After ten minutes, So lets Chan take his hands out of the water.

_"Now, you will have to practice your fists."_ So says. _"You will punch your fists on those wooden poles."_ So points at the numerous wooden poles.

Chan follows his teacher's orders and goes to the wooden poles. As he punches his fist on the first pole, his hand almost breaks, as it was already injured and bleeding because of the boiled water. However, So does not allow his pupil to rest.

_"You will either break twenty poles or punch them for two days! Either way, you will become stronger and you will be able to break your opponents bones with just once punch."_

_"Yes, Beggar So!"_

_Late in the night, outside of the Chongyang Temple_

Meanwhile, late in the night, Xiang sneaks out of the Chongyang Temple. After a few minutes of walking, he finds the man he wants to meet. The man that Xiang wants to meet is dressed with a black cloak that conceals his identity. He is guarded by five soldiers. Xiang bows before the man.

_"Your excellency, Master Gongjin (courtesy name of Zhou Yu)!"_ Xiang says while bowing.

_"I am no excellency."_ Zhou Yu replies. _"I am just the Grand Commander. The excellency is my Lord, Sun Quan."_

_"But you have the loyalty of the army, the love of the people and the support of the Ministers. And the one who has those three traits is the one who is really the Master of a country. Sun Quan has the title of the Lord of the Southland. However, real power lies not in the title, but in the one who can wield it."_

_"Ha! You are good in flattery."_

_"If I wasn't, I would have been killed many times."_

_"So, what plans does your Master has?"_

_"He has send us to kill Zhuge Liang. I know your hate for this man, so I will do my best to kill him."_

_"Good!"_

_"However, I have even better news. Even if I fail to kill Zhuge Liang, I have conceived a plan which shall make the Great Tao Sect obey your commands!"_

_"Good! Good! Excellent!"_

_"I must leave now. In a few days, I will inform you if my plan was a success. And if this plan is a success, all Taoist Priests all over China shall work for the good of the Southland!"_

_"Thank you for your help."_

_"It is only natural that I help the ones who will unify China. Cao Cao has had his power crushed in Red Cliffs. Liu Bei does not have the numbers to unify China. Only you and your Lord, Sun Quan, have both the numbers and the momentum to unify China and restore law and order to the realm."_

_Two days later, Beggar So's house_

Chan, following his teacher's order, punches his fists again and again on the wooden poles for two days. He eats only some grass and drinks as little water as possible. His hands have almost broken and all of his body is bleeding and sweat. When Beggar So arrives in the house and sees that Chan actually followed his order, he is very happy and delighted. Although Chan has not managed to break even one pole, he has been practicing constantly for two days, showing how resolved he is. Beggar So, appreciating the loyalty and resolve of Chan, approaches him and says _"Men like you are hard to be found. You are really worthy to be my student. Go and rest now and come again tomorrow."_

_"Thank you!" _Chan, with tears in his eyes, replies.

_The next day_

After resting for a day, Chan goes again to his teacher's home. There, he sees Beggar So waiting for him.

_"Chan!"_ So says. _"Go and break twenty poles!"_

_"But, teacher..."_

_"You have to believe that you can do it, otherwise you will never do it!"_

Chan goes to the wooden poles. He punches his right fist on the first one and, suddenly, the wooden pole breaks. Chan then goes on, to his surprise, to break with ease all of the twenty wooden poles. Not believing that he had managed to do this, he asks Beggar So how this happened.

_"So, how did I managed to break those poles with such ease?"_ Chan asks.

_"Your constant training for two days strengthened your fists."_ So replies. _"Also, the boiled water in which you put your hands had some rare herbs that help accelerate the progress of your training. So, your two days of training, thanks to those herbs, had the same results as if you had trained constantly for five years. I had not told you about it, because I wanted to test your character. As you see, the one who has resolve and can suffer will be benefited greatly."_

_"Thank you, So!"_

_"Now, train for three hours in the wooden dummies while I prepare something else for you."_

_Three hours later_

Indeed, Chan trains in the wooden dummies for three hours. Once he finishes, Beggar So calls him.

_"Chan!"_ So says. _"You go and break twenty wooden poles again!"_

_"Yes, So!"_

Chan punches his fist on the first pole, but, to his surprise, the pole is oiled and so his hand glides instead of hitting the pole.

Beggar So shouts _"You will punch those poles until you either break them or break your hands!"_

So, Chan, for five days and nights, with almost no rest, punches his fists on the wooden poles. His resolve not to disappoint his teacher is unheard of. Such resolve is very rare. In the sixth day, although his hands are bleeding and broken, he manages to break the twenty wooden poles. When Beggar So sees this, he is very impressed. _"This man will become the Greatest Martial Artist of all time if he lives to my age."_ So thinks.

Chan, with a smile in his face, bows before his teacher and says _"I have broken all twenty poles."_

_"Good! Now, I will teach you how to fly kick your opponent."_

Beggar So throws a bamboo stick on the air and, before it falls on the ground, he jumps on the air and breaks it with a strong flying kick that shows his agility and prowess.

_"Do the same!"_ So shouts and throws a bamboo stick on the air.

Chan tries to jump and kick the bamboo stick, but the only thing he manages is to fall on the ground.

_"Again!"_ So shouts and throws again a bamboo stick on the air.

This is repeated without stop for two days and nights. Chan fails to break even one bamboo stick. But in the third day, he manages to break them all. One after the other, the bamboo sticks are fly kicked and are broken, as Chan jumps on extraordinary, for most humans, heights.

_"Good!"_ So says. _"Now, you will train your internal strength."_

_"Yes, So."_

_"You must empty your mind from all thoughts and repeat the Ancient scripts that I read."_

So and Chan meditate for three whole days. So reads lines from Ancient Martial Arts manuals that originate from the Spring and Autumn Period. Chan empties his mind and repeats those lines, strengthening his internal strength. Chan is able to "suck" the knowledge of the Ancient Kung Fu masters quickly and with ease, and manages to increase profoundly his internal strength.

_The next day_

When Chan arrives to his teacher's house, he sees, except for his teacher, also an other beggar. This beggar is young, with long black hair, a handsome face and wears, like So, teared clothes.

_"This is my other student, Kuang."_ So says while pointing at the young beggar. _"He will help you in your training. Although your strength, both external and internal, is profound now, your techniques are still lacking. And without techniques, you will not be able to achieve anything. Now, train!"_

Kuang approaches Chan and says _"Brother, I will show you the Ku Wai Zheng Fung technique. In order to do this, I will have to offend you, so please forgive me."_

_"It is my honor to learn from you." _Chan replies.

_"Attack me!"_

Kuang takes a defensive posture and waits for Chan to attack him. Chan charges at the man, but Kuang jumps on the air, lands behind Chan and kicks him with his right leg on the back.

_"This is Ku!"_ Kuang shouts.

Before Chan can react, Kuang grabs his head from the hair and hits it on his left knee, causing Chan's face to bleed.

_"This is Wai!"_

Kuang then punches his fists twenty times on Chan's face. The fists of Kuang move like a chain, are coordinated and come one after the other. Chan's nose is broken and is bleeding.

_"This is Zheng!"_

Kuang then turns around and kicks Chan's chest with a powerful back kick.

_"That is Fung!"_

So then approaches Chan and says _"Rest for a few minutes and then go to the wooden dummies and train using the Ku Wai Zheng Fung technique."_

_Six days later_

After six days of training, Chan has mastered the Ku Wai Zheng Fung technique and is ready to go through his teacher's final test. Beggar So orders him once again to break the twenty wooden poles, which are again oiled. Chan in the first five wooden poles uses Ku. He jumps on the air, lands behind each pole and breaks it with a powerful kick. He then uses Wai against the other five poles. He uses his knees to break the wooden poles. Once he has broken ten of the twenty poles using Ku and Wai, So throws on the air forty bamboo sticks, one after the other. Chan jumps on the air and fly kicks and breaks all of them. He then uses Zheng to break other five poles. He punches his fists on the poles and breaks them. For the final five poles, Chan uses Fung. He back kicks and breaks each one of the poles. Now, having destroyed all twenty wooden poles, Chan repeats from memory all Ancient Martial Arts manuals that he had learned from So. Once he finishes this task, So congratulates his pupil: _"Good! If you continue training like this, you will soon become one of the greatest Kung Fu masters in all of China."_


	8. Battle in the Inn

_A few miles outside of Gong'an_

The Taoist Priests Yao Jing and Liao Xiang travel to Gong'an in order to fulfill the task that their Teacher, Abbot Fong Yuen, gave them: to kill Zhuge Liang. In their way to Gong'an, they decide to rest in a inn. The two men enter the inn and sit on a wooden table.

_"What will you take?"_ Xiang asks Jing.

_"Some wine."_ Jing replies.

_"Me too. I will go and order the waiter."_

_"No need. He will soon come."_

_"We are in a hurry."_

Xiang gets up, talks for some while with the waiter and then returns to the table. Soon, the waiter serves them wine. When Jing drinks the wine, he starts feeling dizzy and falls on the ground. The last thing he sees before losing his consciousness is Xiang smiling and laughing.

_The next morning_

The next morning, Jing starts regaining his consciousness. But when he wakes up, he is surprised to see that he is lying on a bed naked with a woman sleeping besides him. Jing shouts _"What are you doing here?!"_ to the woman. The woman leaves the room quickly and Xiang comes in.

_"A Taoist Priest sleeping with a prostitute?"_ Xiang, with a smile in his face, asks. _"What will Teacher and the rest of the world will say? 'The heir to Abbot Fong Yuen lusts after women.' Is this not what they will say?"_

_"You!" _Jing, furious, shouts. _"You drugged me!"_

_"You are really smart!"_

Jing quickly puts on his Taoist robe and pulls out his long sword.

_"I am going to kill you!"_ Jing threatens.

_"Well, you can kill me, but this will not solve your problem. Except for me, and other people witnessed what happened last night. And if you kill me, they will reveal everything to Teacher. So, go ahead! Kill me! Kill me and be ruined!"_

_"I will also kill them!"_

_"You do not even know who they are and where they are, how are you going to do that?"_

_"What do you want me to do?" _Jing, with tears in his eyes, asks.

_"I want you to follow my advises, for the greater good of the Great Tao Sect."_

_"Alright."_

_"Do not be so angry! At least, you slept with a very beautiful woman!" _Xiang says and starts laughing like a maniac.

_A few days later, in Gong'an_

Meanwhile Chan heads towards an inn, in order to buy some wine for his teacher, Beggar So. Chan walks on the streets of Gong'an happy and carefree. He lives the life he wants, away from politics and war. When he enters the inn, which has two floors, he sees a Taoist Priest, Xiang, walking upstairs. He decides to follow him in secret, since he knows that the Great Tao Sect wants Zhuge Liang dead in order to take revenge for the Five Taoist Killers and the two Taoists Chan killed in Red Tiger Village. When Xiang enters his room, Chan goes near the window and overhears the conversation between him and Jing.

_"He will come in a few hours."_ Xiang says.

_"Who?"_ Jing asks.

_"The servant of Zhuge Liang that I've told you about. He will poison Zhuge Liang."_

_"But..."_

_"What?"_

_"Would it not be better to kill him by ourselves in order to take revenge for our fallen brothers?"_

_"Well, Teacher said that we should kill Zhuge Liang using any way possible. Poisoning him is the least dangerous and most sure way to kill him."_

_"What if this fails?"_

_"Well, we will think of something else. Do not worry so much."_

Chan, although not wanting to get involved with politics again, has to help Zhuge Liang. Although he and Zhuge Liang were together only for a short time, they became really good friends. So, Chan cannot just let Zhuge Liang be assassinated. However, he does not know who the traitorous servant is and even if he knew, he would have no proof. Unless, he brings Zhuge Liang to the inn when the Taoists meet the servant. And that's what he is going to do.

_Zhuge Liang's office_

Meanwhile, Zhuge Liang (_courtesy name: Kongming_) and Liu Bei discuss the military situation in Jing Province. Although the Allies had achieved a stunning victory in Red Cliffs, Cao Cao is still far from being defeated. Cao Ren, the younger cousin of Cao Cao and an accomplished General, still holds Jiangling, a large city that it is in a very good strategic position to control the Jing Province. Cao Ren also has 120,000 soldiers compared to the Allied 40,000 soldiers. The fact that Jiangling is a fortified and easily defensible city and that the Allies, in their antagonism for who will take control of the Jing province, do not help each other makes the task of defeating Cao Ren even more difficult.

_"Master Kongming."_ Liu Bei says. _"Do you remember your Longzhong Plan, which you proposed to me when we first met?"_

_"Of course." _Zhuge Liang replies. _"Cao Cao controls the North China Plain, which is key to mastery of China. In view of this, a move to occupy Jing and Yi is vital for success. We can then begin a two-pronged attack to conquer the north. One advance would be from Yi in the west, north through the Qin Mountains, which debouches into the Wei River valley and achieving a strategic position in the west from which to dominate the great bend of the Yellow River and the Guanzhong region. The second advance would be from Jing north towards the political center of Luoyang and the surrounding plains. This is the Longzhong Plan and I still believe that it is the best plan to unify China and restore the Han Dynasty."_

_"But how shall we achieve this? Cao Ren is too strong for us to handle while Zhou Yu is gathering tens of thousands of soldiers for a Siege of Jiangling. I fear that Jiangling will fall in the hands of Zhou Yu. Once this happens, we will have no strong position. Gong'an is too small for being a base of operations and is not in a strategic location like Jiangling."_

_"Do not worry. Zhou Yu is afraid of us more than we are of him. He fears that we will wait for him and Cao Ren to destroy each other forces and then steal Jiangling from him. So, he will soon send someone here to see what we are doing. And then, I can begin my plan which shall give you the Jing Province."_

_"Good. Now, I have to leave."_

_"Goodbye, my Lord."_

As Liu Bei leaves Zhuge Liang's office, a soldier rushes inside, bows before the famous strategist and says _"My Lord, a man named Chan wants to see you."_

Zhuge Liang is delighted to hear news from Chan. He immediately orders the soldier to bring Chan in and cannot hide his happiness. When Chan enters the office, Zhuge Liang gives him a warm welcome.

_"Chan, my good friend!"_ Zhuge Liang, smiling, says. _"How are you doing?"_

_"I am okay." _Chan replies. _"But you must come with me quickly!"_

"Why?"

_"I was going in an inn to buy some wine and saw some Taoist Priests. I followed them and overheard that soon they are going to meet one of your servants, who has agreed to poison you."_

_"What?!"_

_"Come with me, to see who the servant is."_

_"I am coming!"_

So, Zhuge Liang and Chan leave for the inn. A few minutes later, they arrive. They sit on a wooden table on the far back of the inn and try to hide themselves. After a few hours, a man comes in the inn and walks upstairs. Zhuge Liang recognizes him: he is one of his servants. So, Chan and Zhuge follow him discreetly and, when he enters the room of the Taoists, they go near the room's window and overhear what they are saying.

_"Hello."_ Xiang says to the servant. _"Is everything going according to plan?"_

_"Yes." _the servant replies. _"The fool will soon be dead."_

Jing feels somewhat weird and does not speak for a while, but he then shouts _"someone is overhearing us!"_

Xiang and Jing pull out their swords and rush out of the room. Once they get out of the room, they see Chan and Zhuge.

_"Kill them!"_ Xiang shouts.

Xiang tries to slice Chan with his sword, but he dodges again and again the Taoist's attacks. He then uses 'Ku' from the 'Ku Wai Zheng Fung technique'. He jumps on the air, lands behind Xiang and kicks him on the back, causing him to fall on the ground. Chan uses this chance to take Xiang's sword and use it to defend against Jing's sword. Meanwhile, Zhuge Liang runs downstairs, but the servant, who had pulled out a knife, follows him. When both are downstairs, the servant tries to stab Zhuge Liang, but he throws tables and chairs at him. However, the servant continues to try to stab Zhuge Liang, until Zhuge Liang grabs a chair and breaks it on the man's head. The servant's head starts to bleed and he shouts in pain. His head has been broken. A few seconds later, he dies.

At the same time, Jing and Chan fight a sword-duel. Jing tries to slice Chan, but he uses his sword to block all of Jing's attack. This continues until Jing gets through Chan's defense and slices his chest. Chan lets his sword fall on the ground. Jing tries to finish off Chan, but he kicks him on the head with a powerful flying kick, causing Jing to also let his sword fall on the ground. Now, both of them will duel with their bare hands.

Jing tries to kick Chan and attacks him with his right leg more than twenty times. Jing's kicks are fast and coordinated and they come one after the other. Chan, with great difficulty, manages to dodge almost all kicks and goes on the offensive. He punches his right fist on Jing's head, causing him to vomit blood. He tries to repeat this, but Jing is able to block his attack. Jing then kicks Chan's stomach with his left knee, but Chan pushes him back and then punches his right elbow twice on Jing's head. Jing decides to use the Ying Yang Fist. He punches his right fist on Chan's chest. Chan, at first, is alright but soon he vomits lot of blood and falls on the ground. His internal organs have been damaged. Jing charges on Chan and is ready to kill him, but Chan, who repeats in his mind lines from the Ancient Martial Arts manuals he has learned, uses every energy in him to quickly get up and kick with a very, very powerful back kick Jing on the chest, causing him to be pushed back and spit blood. Jing and Xiang, seeing that they cannot defeat Chan, run away. Once they leave, Chan loses his consciousness.

_The next morning_

The next day, in the morning, Chan wakes up and find himself lying on a bed. Zhuge Liang is sitting near him. Seeing that Chan is alright, Zhuge is very delighted.

_"Chan!"_ Zhuge Liang shouts. _"You have woken up!"_

_"How am I?" _Chan, tired and feeling weak, asks.

_"The doctor said that your internal organs were injured and, normally, you should have died. But, it seems that you have immensely huge internal energy and so you survived. You only need some rest."_

_"It seems that those Ancient Manuals saved my life."_

Suddenly, a soldier enters inside the room and bows before Zhuge Liang. He then says _"My Lord, the Grand Commander of the Southland, Master Gongjin (courtesy name of Zhou Yu), wants to inform you that in a few days Lu Su will pay a visit to you."_

_"Good!" _Zhuge Liang, excited, shouts. _"Zhou Yu has taken the bait! Now, I will use his hate and fear for me in order to steal Jiangling from him! I will allow Zhou Yu and Cao Ren to destroy each other and that will be the checkmate for both of them!"_


	9. Duel of the Three Generals

_A few days later, Gong'an, Barracks of the Liu Army_

Lu Su (_courtesy name: Zijing_), the famous Southland diplomat and strategist, is greeted in the Barracks of the Liu Army by Zhuge Liang (_courtesy name: Kongming_) and twenty Liu soldiers. Lu Su arrived in Gong'an only two hours ago. He was send by Zhou Yu (_courtesy name: Gongjin_) in order to see how Liu Bei and his army are doing and discuss about the military operations in the Jing Province. But Zhou Yu also send Lu Su in order to spy on the condition of the Liu Army and learn if they have plans to take over Jiangling. Zhou Yu knows that Jiangling is the key to control the Jing Province, a very important strategic location for those who have the ambition to unify the realm. So, he must not let Liu Bei take over Jiangling or the Jing Province will be lost for the Southland. Zhuge Liang greets Lu Su very warmly.

_"Brother Zijing!"_ Zhuge Liang, smiling, says. "_I haven't seen you for quite some time. How are you doing?"_

_"Brother Kongming! I am alright." _Lu Su replies. _"But I am not here to talk about myself. I am here so we can discuss the military operations in Jing Province."_

_"Of course. Come to my office, so we can talk."_

Zhuge Liang leads Lu Su to his office. On the way there, Lu Su passes through the entire barracks and is shown the Liu army by Zhuge Liang. Lu Su sees only 4,000 peasants in awful condition with old weapons being trained by Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, and only 500 able veteran soldiers. Lu Su, using several excuses, like informing a servant about something or wanting to drink some water or to pee, watches the entire barracks while Southland guards also search not only the barracks, but also the entire city. There is no sign of other soldiers. When Lu Su finally enters Zhuge Liang's office, he is totally sure that the Liu forces are too small and inexperience to pose any threat to Zhou Yu's plan of taking over Jiangling.

Zhuge Liang sits on his office and says to Lu Su: _"Brother Zijing, about the Jing Province, we do not have enough forces right now to help you in the Siege of Jiangling. However, I believe that Liu Qi, nephew of my Lord and son of the previous Governor of the Jing, should take control of the province."_

_"What you say is right, but the Southland was the one that committed the most soldiers in the Battle of Red Cliffs, so Jing should belong to my Lord, Sun Quan."_

_"I have an idea. If Liu Qi either dies or cannot command the province because of health reasons, the Southland will take Jing. However, until then, he will rule the province."_

_"I can accept something like this, but only with the condition that the ones who take over Jiangling will have to stabilize first the situation in the Jing and reorganize the Province, and only then will they give up Jing to Liu Qi. The maximum time available to the ones who conquer Jiangling to reorganize and stabilize the Province is five years."_

_"Alright. I agree with this."_

Lu Su agreed because he is sure that Jiangling will fall to Zhou Yu's hands, especially considering the awful situation of the Liu army, and that in the five years they have to stabilize the Jing, they will have become strong enough to break the deal about giving Jing to Liu Qi. Lu Su thinks that this time, Zhuge Liang has been outwitted. Zhuge Liang, on the other hand, agreed because he knows that the Liu forces will be the ones to take over Jiangling.

When Lu Su and his men leave Gong'an, in the barracks soldiers come out from down in the ground onto the surface. Zhuge Liang had actually build underground tunnels below the barracks in which he had hidden 10,000 elite veteran troops from Lu Su! Except for those soldiers, Zhuge Liang had also hidden countless weapons and siege engines. So, without Zhou Yu knowing, he has more than enough troops to take over Jiangling. Now, he just has to wait until Cao Ren, commander of the Cao forces in Jiangling (which number 120,000 men), and Zhou Yu destroy each other. And when the right situation appears, Zhuge Liang will grab it and with one masterful move will make Liu Bei Lord of the Jing Province.

_Outside Jiangling, Southland Camp, Zhou Yu's tent_

A few days later, Lu Su arrives back to the Southland Camp. While Lu Su was in Gong'an, Zhou Yu had set a camp outside Jiangling and prepared 30,000 men and hundreds of siege engines to besiege the city. Lu Su enters his Grand Commander's tent and bows before him. He then informs him of the situation in the Liu camp and the deal he made with Zhuge Liang. Zhou Yu is overjoyed to hear that. At last, he has outwitted Zhuge Liang. Or so he thinks.

_"Have the soldiers to surround the city and prepare the siege engines!"_ Zhou Yu orders Lu Su. _"I am going to take over Jiangling!"_

_"Yes, my Lord."_

_"Also bring as much supplies as possible. The siege may last for months, so we need to be prepared."_

_"Of course, my Lord. I would do that even without you saying it. Supplies are the most important part of war."_

_"Good!"_

And so, the Siege of Jiangling begins. Cao Ren has the numbers, while Zhou Yu the better troops, since most of them are veterans of Red Cliff and other battles, as well as countless siege engines. Thousands of archers fire arrows on their enemy, killing thousand Cao and Southland men. The siege engines of the Southland cause much damage in the city's wall as well as a huge loss of life in the Cao camp. Disease and hunger haunts both sides. The supplies that Zhou Yu ordered were not enough. In both camps, starving crippled soldiers are found in thousands. After one and a half month of being besieged, Cao Ren decides to face Zhou Yu in an open battle and attempt an exodus. It is the right time. Although Cao Ren has lost thousands of men, he still has 80,000 men compared to Zhou Yu's 20,000. Also, despite having lost more men and the starvation in the city, Cao Ren is better off than Zhou Yu, whose men are exhausted from the long siege, are starving, suffer from diseases and believe that besieging a fortified city like Jiangling is madness. Zhou Yu, seeing that Cao Ren will make an exodus, wants to inspire his men to fight on. He knows what is needed to inspire an army. The men need to see their leader and they need to hear a good speech in order to be inspired. Being a good orator is as important as being a good tactician in a battle, at least according to Zhou Yu. So, Zhou Yu rides with his white horse in front of his men. Wearing his white uniform with the golden breastplate, he can be spotted from miles away, and he knows that. He wants his men to recognize him, even during the most fierce battles. A soldier who sees his General fighting alongside him can find the strength, somehow, to do superhuman deeds. Zhou Yu decides to give an inspirational speech to his men. A speech that will raise their morale and fighting abilities and give them back their courage.

_"My men! My brothers! Today we shall face the cowards in an open battle! Thousands of our comrades have died so that we can take over Jiangling. We shall not give up now! We shall not let them down and allow Cao Ren to retain control of this vital city! The enemy outnumbers us in men, but we outnumber them in bravery! Each one of you has fought in more battles and has killed more enemies than all of the enemy soldiers together! Men, I know that there is the danger that the enemy numbers will overwhelm us. I know that we are few against many. We may all die. Many of you may think that this battle is lost. You may want to retreat and save your lives. I will not blame if you do that. In fact, I will allow anyone who wants to leave the army to do so without being punished. But, I ask you, do you want to retreat and live like cowards or do you want to fight and die like heroes!? If you retreat, you may live a long life but you will be forgotten by all, be poor and be looked down by all for being cowards. Your children will be ashamed of having you as their father. If you stay here, you shall live for ever in history, you will be remembered as heroes and you shall make make proud the spirits of your ancestors. If you defeat your enemy, rich provinces will await you and you will become wealthy and powerful. So, shall we stand our ground? Shall we fight?!"_

All soldiers shout with one voice _"We shall fight! We shall fight! We shall fight!"_ Not even one soldier leaves the army. All Southland men, hearing this passionate speech, regain their courage and decide to either win or die. While Zhou Yu was making the speech, Cao Ren had been preparing his men for the upcoming battle. And so, the battle begins. Cao Ren leads his army outside the city. The elite Cao cavalry forms the vanguard of the army and charges on the Southland army, while the infantry follows closely behind. Southland archers fire their arrows at the enemy soldiers, killing thousands of Cao cavalrymen. Zhou Yu, seeing how close the cavalry of Cao Ren is, decides to personally lead an elite force of 2,000 cavalrymen against them. The odds are great. The Cao cavalry is 17,000 strong. However, Zhou Yu is not afraid of death and is the first to charge on the enemy. Seeing their General charging first against the enemy, the Southland cavalrymen follow behind, determined to either defeat the enemy or die.

The Southland cavalry collides with the Cao cavalry. Southland cavalrymen pierce through the armor of their Cao counterparts with their spears, while Cao cavalrymen use their swords to behead and dismember their enemies. Soon, the infantry of both sides joins the fight. Soldiers fight on top of thousand of dismembered bodies. Heads, hands, chests, even eyes and ears are lying on the ground, all covered in blood. The infantry soldiers on both sides fight their enemies with every weapon they can find. They use rocks to break the head of their enemies. They even fight with their bare hands. Both sides fight bravely. But, the experience of the Southland soldiers combined with the use of their siege engines against the Cao army, leads Cao Ren to retreat back to the city. He has lost 30,000 men. Zhou Yu also lost 9,000 men. The battle had no real winner and both sides returned to where they had been before the battle. As Zhuge Liang had predicted, both sides were losing thousands of their men in pointless battles.

_Two days after the battle, Gong'an, office of Zhuge Liang_

Zhuge Liang is, as usual, reading a military manual, when Guan Yu (_courtesy name: Yunchang_), the sworn brother of Liu Bei, enters inside the room and bows before him.

_"Your excellency!"_ Guan Yu shouts. _"I have news."_

_"What news do you have, Yunchang?"_

_"Cao Ren is preparing to retreat from Jiangling. We should rush and take the city before Zhou Yu!"_

_"No! My masterpiece has not been completed yet. Cao Ren still has to play one final part."_

Late in the night, outside Jiangling

When the darkness of the night comes, Cao Ren along with tens of thousand of troops abandons Jiangling. Zhou Yu knows of this but decides not to chase Cao Ren, since this would bring the Cao forces in a desperate position where they will have to fight for their lives and force them to battle to the last man. Instead, he sends a small cavalry force to harass the retreating enemy and enters with the majority of his army in Jiangling. As the Southland soldiers enter the city, they find it completely abandoned. Everything is quite and that gives Zhou Yu a bad feeling. Suddenly, almost out of nowhere, Cao archers fire flaming arrows from the walls of the city while Cao spearmen charge out of the houses. The retreat of Cao Ren, as it had been predicted by Zhuge Liang, was fake! Soon, the fire spreads all over the city and thousand of Southland soldiers are burned alive. Zhou Yu tries to reorganize his forces and retreat, but he has lost control of his men. There is anarchy in the Southland army. Zhou Yu himself is injured by an arrow which penetrates his chest and collapses. The Southland army and Zhou Yu are saved from certain death by Lu Su who, with a small number of soldiers and generals, restores order in the Southland army and manages to pull off a successful retreat back to the Southland camp.

_A few hours later, Gong'an, office of Zhuge Liang_

Guan Yu enters once again in the office of Zhuge Liang and informs him of Cao Ren's ambush. He then urges the Liu strategist to take over Jiangling.

_"Master Kongming!"_ Guan Yu says. "_I think that now is the right time to take over Jiangling."_

_"No! The time has not come yet. Zhou Yu still has a final part to play in my masterpiece. I know him well. He is one of the greatest strategists in China and knows how to adapt in situations."_

_"I hope that you are right, your excellency."_

_A few minutes later, outside the Southland camp_

Meanwhile, Cao Ren has gathered all his forces for a final attack on the Southland army, with which he will crush once and for all Zhou Yu. His men fortify in front of the enemy camp and wait for the Southland officers to meet them. Indeed, Zhou Yu and his officers, riding on their horses, come close to the Cao army. Cao Ren and his officers also ride their horses and go to meet their Southland counterparts.

_"Zhou Yu, you idiot!"_ Cao Ren shouts. _"You have been totally outwitted by me! You have lost the war! Soon, your wife, Xiao Qiao, will be sleeping with me! Hahahahaha!"_

Zhou Yu, not withstanding the emotional shock and because of being injured by the enemy arrow, vomits blood and falls on the ground. The Southland officers ride off their horses and come close to their Grand Commander. They then cry and shout that Zhou Yu is dead. Hearing this, Cao Ren, knowing that Zhou Yu is the heart of the Southland army, orders an all out offensive. The Southland officers retreat, along with their guards, deep inside the Southland camp. Soon, Cao Ren realizes that the Southland camp is abandoned and has almost no soldiers in it. Suddenly, a fire spreads in the entire camp, which is soon blazing, and Southland soldiers charge from all directions. Cao Ren, to his surprise, also sees that the Southland attack is led in person by Zhou Yu! Zhou Yu had faked his own death in order to lure Cao Ren inside the Southland Camp and give him a taste of his own medicine. Thousands of Cao soldiers are killed and Cao Ren has to retreat.

_Meanwhile, Gong'an, office of Zhuge Liang_

At the same time, Zhuge Liang orders Guan Yu to come to his office.

_Yunchang!"_ Zhuge Liang shouts. _"Take our 10,000 elite men and rush to Jiangling!"_

_"Yes, Sir!"_

Guan Yu leads his 10,000 men, which include 3,000 elite horsemen, in person, riding his black horse. His long beard and his eyes that are like that of a phoenix's inspire courage to his men. Two hours later, Guan Yu arrives in Jiangling, which is empty. He enters inside the city and slaughters with ease the few Cao defenders. Meanwhile, Cao Ren and the Cao troops who survived Zhou Yu's ambush finally reach Jiangling, only to find out that Guan Yu had taken the city. Cao Ren has no choice but to retreat. A few minutes later, Zhou Yu and his men arrive and they see the Liu banners all over the walls of the city and Guan Yu on top of the walls.

_"You!"_ Zhou Yu shouts. _"You took my city!"_

_"Master Kongming send me here to help you." _Guan Yu says. _"You can now rest your army. Also, according to our agreement, we will take control of Jing province until we stabilize it, so we can give it to Liu Qi."_

Zhou Yu, hearing that all this was Zhuge Liang's idea and realizing that he had been tricked since the beginning, collapses and loses his consciousness, this time for real.

_A few hours later, Southland Camp, Zhou Yu's tent_

After a few hours pass, Zhou Yu regains his consciousness. He finds himself lying on his bed and Lu Su looking after him.

_"Grand Commander!"_ Lu Su, delighted to see Zhou Yu waken, shouts. _"How are you doing?"_

_"I am better. What can we do about Jiangling?"_

_"We have no choice but to let them take it over. We have to follow the agreement we made. Not because it is fair, but because we cannot do otherwise. We must not fight Liu Bei just yet, now that Cao Cao gathers his forces for a massive counterattack. And even if we declare war against them, they have Jiangling and so they are in a very good strategic situation. Combine this with our losses from the siege and you can understand that we will have to give up Jing to them for now."_

_"Dammit! I will return to the Southland and train my army. Once I have gathered a strong enough force, I will crush Zhuge Liang!"_


	10. Duel in the Bamboo Forest

_Chongyang Temple, headquarters of the Great Tao Sect_

The Taoist Priests Yao Jing and Liao Xiang have finally returned, defeated, to the Chongyang Temple, headquarters of the Great Tao Sect. They enter their Master's room and bow before him. Abbot Fong Yuen, who has learned about the failure of his students, is furious.

_"You idiots!"_ Fong Yuen shouts at his students. _"You have failed to kill this bastard Zhuge Liang! You know what the world will think if my two best students cannot assassinate a simple scholar!?"_

_"But, Master!" _Xiang replies. _"A man with great martial art skill protected Zhuge Liang."_

_"How great was his martial arts!?" _Fong Yuen, furious, asks.

_"Very good, Teacher."_ Jing answers. _"He was able to take on both me and brother Xiang. And he was even able to withstand the Ying Yang Fist and then counterattack!"_

_"What?! How can a man posses such prowess?" _Fong Yuen shouts.

_"Teacher, brother Jing is speaking the truth."_ Xiang replies.

_"Fine!"_ Fong Yuen sighs. _"I will go to assassinate Zhuge Liang by myself along with 40 disciples. You will stay here and practice your martial arts."_

_"Yes, Teacher." _both Xiang and Jing say with one voice.

_"I shall soon see how skilled is this man!"_

_Wuchang, Capital of the Southland_

Zhou Yu (_courtesy name: Gongjin_), after his humiliating failure to capture Jiangling, has returned to the Southland to train his troops, raise new armies and make up new plans of how to retake the Jing Province and humiliate his hated archenemy, Zhuge Liang. Zhou Yu comes to the Throne Room of the Lord of the Southland, Sun Quan, and bows before him. Sun Quan, who sits on his golden throne, is a relative young handsome man with long black hair, blue eyes and a muscular body.

_"Gongjin!"_ Sun Quan shouts. _"I've been informed of your failure to take over Jiangling! This failure cost the Southland 25,000 men from an army of 30,000! Do you understand the cost of losing so many men, most of them veterans, for no gain?! Do you?! And do you understand that we sacrificed all those troops only to make Liu Bei stronger?! Do you!? Do you?! I ask you! Do you?! Do you?!"_

Zhou Yu is embarrassed and ashamed. He tries to replies, but for a few seconds he cannot even say a single word, while at the same time Sun Quan continues to shouts and ask him _"Do you?!"_. Zhou Yu suddenly starts feeling dizzy. Zhou Yu has never been humiliated so much. By anyone. Nor had he suffered such a failure. Nor had he ever been scolded so much. _"It is all Zhuge Liang's fault!"_ he thinks. Zhou Yu, without having the courage to look Sun Quan, simply replies _"I understand."_

_"Then what will you do about it?! What?! What?!" _Sun Quan, furious, shouts.

_"Well, I have a plan, your Highness."_

_"What plan?"_

_"To use your sister, Lady Sun Shangxiang, who is a very, very beautiful woman, to lure Liu Bei in Southland."_

_"How could...that work?"_

_"Well, you could propose a marriage and an alliance to Liu Bei. His wife died only recently, so he will be looking for a new wife. Your sister will be the natural choice for him. In this way, he could strengthen the alliance with you, not to say that your sister is only 18 years old while Liu Bei in his fifties."_

_"And, once we lure him, what...shall we do?"_

_"Kill him, of course!"_

_"Good! Very good! Excellent! Magnificent! I love your plan! I shall adopt it!"_

_Jiangling, Office of Zhuge Liang_

Liu Bei enters the office of his Strategist, Zhuge Liang (_courtesy name: Kongming_), to talk about the proposal of Sun Quan for Liu Bei to marry his sister.

_"Master Kongming."_ Liu Bei says. _"You know of the proposal of Sun Quan. What should I do?"_

_"It is very dangerous!"_

Zhuge Liang warns. _"But you cannot refuse, since this would be an insult to Sun Quan and could threaten our alliance, at a time when we need Sun Quan because Cao Cao is mustering an army of hundreds of thousands of soldiers for a new offensive. We need the alliance. So, you must go to the Southland."_

_"But...they may try to kill me."_

_"I know. Once you are in the Southland, there is little I can do. You need a highly skilled man to come with you. A man who would also have the respect of the Southland Generals: Zhou Yun."_

_"So, I will go to the Southland with Zhou Yun?"_

_"Yes."_

_"I will go and I hope, for the good of the Han Dynasty, that I will return alive."_

_A week later, in the streets of Jiangling_

After a week of traveling, Fong Yuen and his 40 disciples have reached Jiangling. Fong Yuen is determined to kill Zhuge Liang and take revenge for all this humiliation. Fong Yuen is sure of his success. After all, he is recognized by all the pugilist world as the most able Kung Fu Master in the whole of China. How can a simple scholar and a young man defeat him? Even if they send a whole army of tens of thousands against him, Fong Yuen is confident than he can crush them. Not to say that each one of his 40 students is a great martial artist in his own right. This time, Zhuge Liang is dead for sure. Or so he thinks.

As Fong Yuen walks towards the office of Zhuge Liang, a Liu General, commanding 80 soldiers, stops him.

_"Who are you?!"_ the General shouts.

Instead of giving a reply, Fong Yuen uses his "Iron Claws" technique to dig out the man's eyes and then kills the man by choking him to death using his right hand. The Liu soldiers, seeing their General dead, try to attack, but the Taoists pull out their swords and in less than a minute they have massacred all 80 soldiers.

_"I am Fong Yuen, the undefeated Abbot of the Great Tao Sect!"_ Fong Yuen shouts.

Meanwhile, Chan and Kuang, the other disciple of Beggar So, are on their way to buy some wine for their teacher. They walk in the streets of Jiangling and talk about the techniques their teacher showed to them.

_"The Sword style of teacher needs speed, agility and concentration."_ Kuang says. _"It needs much practice, but, once you learn it, your swordplay will be unmatched."_

_"My internal energy is also improving." _Chan replies.

_"Indeed. You have much internal strength. If you continue improving like this, you will soon become the greatest martial artist in all of China."_

_"You are overestimating me."_

_"Not at all."_

Suddenly, as they walk towards the local inn to buy the wine, they see Fong Yuen and his 40 students heading towards Zhuge Liang's office. Chan, realizing that his friend's life is in danger, says _"Kuang, hurry! We must save Zhuge Liang."_ and runs to inform Zhuge Liang. Kuang, also running, follows Chan.

_A few minutes later, Zhuge Liang's office_

Zhuge Liang is sitting in his office and thinking of how to counter Zhou Yu's plan. Liu Bei has just left for the Southland, along with Zhou Yun, and Zhuge Liang knows that sooner or later, Zhou Yu will try to assassinate Liu Bei. And if Liu Bei is killed, the Liu forces will crumble. As he keeps thinking, Chan and Kuang rush inside the room. Chan shouts _"Fong Yuen is here! Run!"_

Before Zhuge Liang can reply, four Taoists enter the room, Chan shouts at Kuang _"Take Zhuge out of the city!"_. He then pulls out a sword and charges at the Taoists. All four Taoists pull out their swords and take defensive stance. Chan tries to kill the first Taoist, but he blocks again and again his attacks. Chan understands that his enemies are top Kung Fu experts. A few moments later, Fong Yuen enters the room. Chan, who sees that Kuang and Zhuge have left, and knowing that he is no match for the Taoist Abbot, runs away. The Taoists follow him. After running for a few minutes, Chan reaches a bamboo forest outside the city. While he is running there, he sees Kuang and Zhuge running.

_"Are you alright?"_ Zhuge asks.

_"I am alright."_ Chan replies. _"Run!"_

The three men run, but Abbot Fong Yuen follows behind closely. As Fong Yuen is very near to reaching his enemies, Beggar So, suddenly, appears. He holds a bamboo stick in his hands and stops the Taoist Kung Fu master.

_"Old man, get out of my way!"_ Fong Yuen shouts.

_"You call me old man?"_ So asks. _"Then, are you saying that you are a young man?"_

So then starts laughing. Fong Yuen is furious.

_"How dare you make fun of the Abbot of the Great Tao Sect?!"_

_"I am sorry, Master...what is your name?"_

_"You do not know me?!"_

_"Why are you getting angry? Do you think that any other serious martial artist knows of a clown like you?"_

Fong Yuen is really furious. He has never been insulted like that. He orders his students to chase after the three men (Chan, Kuang, Zhuge) and then pulls out his sword, the _"Tao Sword"_, a dadao, which has a broad blade three feet long, long hilt meant for two-handed use, and a weight-forward balance. While not a particularly sophisticated sword, the weight and balance of the dadao give it considerable slashing and chopping power, making it an effective close combat weapon.

_"Pull out your sword!"_ Fong Yuen shouts.

_"I do not need a sword to beat you."_ So, laughing, replies. _"The bamboo stick I am holding is enough to deal with clowns like you."_

And so the duel begins. Fong tries to cut off So's leg, but he jumps on the air and dodges the attack. When he lands back to the ground, he charges at Fong and attacks him with fastness and prowess. But Fong's _"Tao Sword"_ is able to block all of Fong's attacks and even slashes his stomach.

_"Ha!"_ Fong laughs. _"Take this!"_

So counterattacks. He jumps on the air and attacks with his bamboo stick Fong while on the air. Fong is unable to resist and the bamboo stick hits his head. Fong, bleeding, falls back. So lands on the ground and charges at Fong. Fong is able to resist the first few attacks but soon the bamboo stick gets through his defense and hits him hard on the stomach. Fong vomits blood and lets his sword fall on the ground.

_"Lets fight with bare arms!"_ So shouts and throws away his bamboo stick.

Fong tries to kick thrice So, but he blocks all of the attacks. Fong has no choice but to use his Ying Yang Fist. But So dodges it and kicks him on the head. The Taoist Abbot decides to use his internal energy. He repeats lines from Ancient Taoist Texts and attacks So with his palms. So, who also uses his internal energy, uses his palms to stop his enemy's attack. The palms of the two men collide and the two struggle to use as much of their internal energy as possible or, if they are defeated, they will suffer serious injuries. Using internal energy is very dangerous and can cause serious internal injuries and can even kill a person.

Meanwhile, the 40 Taoists have surrounded Chan, Kuang and Zhuge. As the Taoists pull out their swords, Kuang pulls out his bamboo stick while Chan pulls out his butterfly swords. The blade of the butterfly swords is roughly as long as a human forearm, which allows for greater maneuverability when spinning and rotating during close-quarters fighting. The butterfly swords also have a small crossguard to protect the hands of the wielder.

Once they have pulled out their swords, the Taoists charge at the three men. Chan and Kuang use So's swordplay to kill their enemies. Kung, uses his bamboo stick to break the heads of his enemies while Chan uses his two swords to dismember and slash his opponents. Although the Taoists are highly skilled, they are not able to protect themselves from the furious attacks of Chan and Kuang. The two men also use their internal energy, which they transfer to their weapons, to make them more effective. Soon heads, hands and chests are flying on the air as the two heroes massacre their enemies.

Meanwhile, So and Fong, understanding that they have equal internal strength, decide to pull away their palms before being killed by the overuse of their internal energy. As they pull their palms away, with great difficulty, they are pushed back and vomit blood. The overuse of internal strength has caused them serious internal injuries. Fong, understanding this, decides to leave. So, with great difficulty, also manages to leave.

_A few hours later, Zhuge Liang's office_

Zhuge Liang is back to his office, safe and sound. Zhuge Liang has also called Chan to his office to talk with him about an important mission. A mission that concerns the future of China.

_"Chan, thanks for your help."_

_"It's nothing. As friends, we must help each other."_

_"Then, I need your help."_

_"What is it?"_

_"I want you to protect Lord Liu Bei from Zhou Yu's attacks!"_


	11. Iron Armor Yaung

_In a countryside inn in Hunghao, a few miles away from Wuchang_

Chan has been following in secret Liu Bei for almost a week. His mission is to protect the Warlord and Han loyalist from Zhou Yu's attacks. After walking for quite a few hours, Chan decides to take a rest in a local countryside inn located in the small village of Hunghao. He enters the inn, sits in a wooden table and orders some wine and a soup. As he drinks his wine, a young man dressed in a blue silk robe, showing that he is very rich, enters the inn along with six men, all muscular and most likely the young man's bodyguards. The young man sits on a table, along with his men, and then shouts at the innkeeper _"You idiot, come serve me quickly!"_

_"Yes, Master Kwonk."_ the innkeeper, who is a fat old man, replies. _"Daughter!"_ he then shouts. _"Serve the Master."_

A young and very beautiful woman comes a few minutes later and serves the men with some wine. As she is ready to leave, in order to serve and other costumers, Kwonk grabs her hand and says _"Pretty face, why do you not sit here with us and enjoy some wine?"_

_"I have to serve the costumers, young Master." _She, calmly despite her anger, replies.

_"Are you saying that the other costumers are more important than me?"_

_"No...I"_

_"Then sit with me!"_

_"I...can't. I am engaged."_

_"Who gives a damn about that?!" _Kwonk, furious that the woman refuses to sit with him, shouts.

_"I...I cannot sit with you."_

Kwonk has had enough. As the woman is ready to leave, he givers her a slapping and grabs her. Chan, while at first not caring and not wanting to stir up trouble, decides to intervene.

_"Let the lady go!"_ Chan shouts.

Kwonk pushes away the woman, comes towards Chan, along with his men, and says _"Who are you to meddle with my business?"_

_"I am Chan."_

_"So, Chan, you seem to not know that my father is the famous Yaung, the richest landlord in the area and a famous martial artist."_

_"Who gives a damn about that?"_

Kwonk is furious that someone has insulted his father and so he orders his men to surround and attack Chan. Chan grabs his table and breaks it on the head of the first attacker, causing him to collapse on the ground. The second man tries to hit Chan with his right fist, but Chan dodges the attack and then uses the "Wai" of the "Ku Wai Zheng Fung technique". He grabs the man's head from the hair and hits it hard on his left knee, causing the man's face to start bleeding. He then kicks him thrice on the stomach, killing him. The third man pulls out a knife and slashes Chan's chest, but Chan quickly kicks the man's head, causing him to let his knife fall on the ground. Chan grabs the knife and stabs the man's stomach, killing him, and then throws the knife on the fourth man's head, also killing him. The two remaining men pull out their long swords and charge together at Chan, but he pulls out his two butterfly swords and dismembers the two men. Kwonk, seeing that Chan is highly skilled, runs away. The young woman approaches Chan and thanks him.

_"Thank you, young Master."_ she says. _"My name is Lihua."_

_"It is nothing. It's my duty to stop thugs like him."_

_"But he will not let this go away. He will surely have his father to kill you."_

_"Let him try!"_

As Chan is talking with Lihua, he sees Kuang entering the inn. Chan is very surprised about this. He had not told Kuang about his mission, so what is he doing here? Lihua, seeing Kuang, runs and embraces him. He then tells to Chan _"Kuang is my fiance."_

_"Brother Kuang!"_ Chan, delighted to see his brother, shouts. _"How are you doing?"_

_"Brother Chan, I did not expect to see you here!" _Kuang, also happy, replies.

_"So, you know each other?"_ Lihua asks.

_"Of course!"_ Chan replies. _"We are good friends and students of Beggar So!"_

_"Chan, what are you doing here?"_ Kuang asks.

_"I am on a mission to protect Liu Bei."_

_"Zhuge Liang gave you that mission, right?"_

_"Yes."_

_"Having a friend like him is both good and bad. Good because of how admirable he is as a person but bad because you can never live a carefree life."_

_"He is my friend. I got to help him. Not to say that Liu Bei has treated me very kindly. By the way, some thugs tried to rape your fiancee."_

_"What?! Who did this?"_

_"A man named Kwonk. No need to worry. I beat them up."_

_"I know this man. He dares to act like that because his father, Yaung, is a very rich landlord, a great Kung Fu master and he is also a Southland Magistrate. Yaung is no better than his son in character. He disregards all laws, steals the poor of the little money they have and oppresses them. And Sun Quan, Lord of the Southland, instead of doing something to stop this corrupted man, treats him like a good friend. When some Village Chiefs managed to get Sun Quan to give them an audience and told him about Yaung's crimes, not only he did nothing to stop his corruption, but he also executed the Village Chiefs and ordered his army to plunder their villages. Hundreds died. What a ruler!"_

_"It seems that the only ruler deserving praise is Liu Bei. He always puts the people above himself. He never lets the strong oppress the poor. He is a just ruler."_

_"Indeed. That is why you must protect him from Zhou Yu."_

_"By the way, do you mind if I stay here tonight?"_

_"Of course not! Stay here so we can chat until dawn while drinking wine!"_

_The next morning_

Indeed, Chan and Kuang chat and drink wine all night. They have a quite great time. But the next morning is not so good for them. A Southland official, accompanied by twenty soldiers, enters the inn. The innkeeper greets them, but the official pushes him away and approaches Chan and Kuang.

_"You!"_ the official shouts while pointing with his finger at Chan and Kuang. _"You are arrested!"_

_"For what?!" _Kuang, furious, asks.

_"For murder!"_

_"I will have no problem being arrested if you also arrest Yaung, who has murdered hundreds of people, and and his son, Kwonk, who has raped tens of women."_

_"How dare you?!"_

The official orders his men to charge at the two heroes, but Chan pulls out his two butterfly swords and Kung his bamboo stick and they attack the soldiers. One after the other, the soldiers are killed with ease. Soon, three villagers, who were drinking some wine in the inn, grab their tables and attack with them the soldiers. A few seconds later, two beggars and other five villagers, who had heard of the fight, enter the inn and attack the soldiers, shouting _"End the oppression!"_

A simple fight had sparked a village revolt against Yaung and his thugs. Soon, all the soldiers are massacred and the villagers cut off their heads and impale them on bamboo sticks. They then run all over the village, showing the impaled heads and shouting _"End the oppression! Rise up in revolt!"_

_A few minutes later, office of Magistrate Yaung_

Magistrate Yaung is in his office and is waiting for the Southland official and his soldiers to bring to him the men that dared to resist him. Suddenly, a soldier rushes into the room, bows before Yaung and shouts _"Sir, there is a revolt!"_

_"What?!" _Yaung asks.

_"The villagers, taking courage and inspiration from the resistance of those two bastards, have risen up in revolt and call for Lord Sun Quan to imprison you and restore justice."_

_"Send the troops!"_

_"Sir, we have only 30 soldiers."_

_"Then, also send my bodyguards. I have more than fifty bodyguards, all Kung Fu experts, ready for action."_

_"I will follow your orders, sir."_

_An hour later_

As the hundreds of villagers protest outside the office of Magistrate Yaung, the thirty soldiers and fifty bodyguards arrive. All armed with swords, they charge at the villagers and massacre tens of them. Soon, an all out battle erupts. Meanwhile, Sun Quan, who had been informed of the trouble because Hunghao is only a few miles away from Wuchang, send a cavalry force of 200 men to end the revolt. As the fighting in the village had reached a stalemate, the cavalry entered the village, charged at the protestors and massacred all of them. At the end of the fight, more than 900 villagers, many of them women and elderly people, had been killed while only 10 soldiers and 7 bodyguards had been killed. While the battle was going on, Kuang and Chan were in the inn. While they sympathized with the villagers, they knew that an open revolt was not going to succeed. As they discuss what to do, an old villager, who is bleeding, enters the inn and approaches them.

_"They...they...they massacred everyone."_ the man says. _"Please...help...help...help us Masters!"_

The man then dies. Seeing this, Chan is outraged. Although he had expected that the revolt would be cracked down, he never thought that Yaung would massacre so many people.

_"That's enough!"_ Chan shouts. _"I am going to give this bastard Yaung a lesson!"_

_"I will come with you!" _Kuang says. _"We must take revenge for all those who died!"_

_A few hours later, residency of Magistrate Yaung_

Chan and Kuang come to the residency of Magistrate Yaung. When they approach the entrance, three bodyguards stop them. One of them says _"No one is allowed here!"_

Instead of replying, Chan kicks him twice on the head, breaking it and killing the man. The second man charges but Kuang uses the "Fung" of the "Ku Wai Zheng Fung technique". He kicks the man with a very powerful back kick on the chest, causing him to spit blood and collapse on the ground. Chan then uses "Zheng" of the "Ku Wai Zheng Fung technique" on the third man. He punches his fists thirty times on the man's face, killing him. Chan and Kuang then rush inside the residency. There, five soldiers charge at them, all armed with swords. Three attack Chan and two Kuang.

The first soldiers tries to cut off Chan's head, but he dodges the sword and then punches his right fist on the man's throat, killing him. The other two soldiers also try to kill Chan with their swords, but he jumps on the air when they charge at him, causing them to fall on the ground. When Chan lands back on the ground, he grabs the two men from their hair and collides their heads, breaking them.

Meanwhile, Kuang kills the first soldiers with a very powerful kick on his stomach and causes the second to lose his consciousness by kicking him very hard on his genetic organs, breaking them. The two heroes then head towards the office of Yaung, but they are attacked by ten bodyguards. Five attack Chan and five Kuang. The two heroes make short work of those men and kill them with ease. They then charge into the office of Yaung.

Yaung, who is sitting on his wooden office, says _"I've waited for you."_

_"Cut the crap!"_ Chan shouts.

Yaung jumps on the air and kicks Chan's face with a very powerful flying kick, breaking his nose and causing him to fall on the ground. Yaung then kicks with a back kick Kuang's genetic organs, causing him to also fall on the ground. The two men quickly get up, only to fall again on the ground when Yaung punches his right elbow onto Chan's face and kicks Kuang's stomach. The two men, with great difficulty, rise up once again.

_"I will grab him and you kill him!"_ Kuang shouts. He then charges at Yaung and tries to grab him, but Yaung jumps on the air and kicks Kuang's back with a very strong back kick. Chan tries to punch his fist on Yaung's stomach, but he dodges it and then kicks Chan's face with his left knee. He then punches his right palm on Chan's chest, pushing him back and causing him to vomit huge amounts of blood.

_"Do you like my 'Iron Palm' ?"_ Yaung asks while laughing.

Chan pulls out his two swords and tries to stab Yaung, but they cannot penetrate Yaung's body.

_"How is that possible?!"_ Chan shouts.

_"Hahaha! I have trained in "Iron Armor" and no weapons can harm me."_ Yaung, laughing, answers.

Kuang charges again at Yaung, while he laughs, and grabs him. Yaung punches again and again his right elbow on Kuang's head, but not only he does not stop holding him, but he also bites him with all his strength. Chan finds the chance to dig out Yaung's eyes with his "Two Deadly Fingers" technique. Yaung, shouting in pain, hits very hard Kuang's head with his elbow, causing Kuang to fall on the ground. But Chan quickly kicks Yaung's throat, killing him. Badly injured, the two heroes leave the residence. They have managed to kill the corrupt Magistrate and take revenge for all the people who were killed.


	12. Young Master Tang

_In the streets of Jiangling_

Old Beggar So is walking in the streets of Jiangling. Because all his students are away, he has to go buy wine on his own. As he walks, an old man approaches him.

_"So!"_ the man says. _"My good friend!"_

_"Shang!" _So, laughing, shouts. _"How are you doing?"_

_"I am alright. However, you will not be."_

_"Why?"_

_"I have heard news that the Masters of Kongjiing Fist, Invincible Kick and Taijoi Fist have all been killed by a young man who wants to become ruler of the pugilist world."_

_"Who?"_

_"The man's name, from what I heard, is Tang. He has hired many Barbarian pugilists, like Mongols and Indians."_

_"And why I should worry about him?"_

_"I've heard that he wants to kill you in order to prove that he should rule the pugilist world."_

_"Well, let him try. Even Fong Yuen failed to kill me. I do not believe that a young man and some barbarians can do what Fong Yuen failed to achieve."_

_The next day, Beggar So's house_

Beggar So is smoking his pipe and drinking some wine while lying on the ground, just outside of his house. The grass, which is cool, helps him relax. As he is relaxing, he sees a few men coming towards him. They seem to be led by a young man wearing a red silk robe and holding a hand fan. A muscular man armed with a sword approaches Beggar So and says _"Young Master Tang demands that you kowtow before him and accept him as ruler of the pugilist world!"_

Instead of replying, So continues smoking his pipe.

_"Are you deaf?"_ the man asks.

_"No."_ So replies. _"I am just not in the mood to hear jokes."_

_"You think that I am joking?!"_

_"A bit."_

The man tries to kill So with his sword, but So blocks the sword with his pipe and then punches the pipe on the man's face thrice. He then gets up and kicks twice the man's stomach with two powerful back kicks. The man tries to attack again with his sword, but So jumps on the air, dodges the sword attack, lands behind the man and hits him very hard on the head with the pipe, causing him to fall on the ground. The man tries to get up, but So grabs him and throws him on his house. As the man's body hits the wooden wall of the house, he loses his consciousness

_"Impressive!"_ the young man, approaching towards So, shouts. _"Very impressive. I, Tang, have heard of your skills, but I thought that those were just rumors. But you have proved to be very skilled. However, do you believe that you can defeat my other fighters?"_

_"Of course."_

_"Well, let me introduce you to them."_

Tang points at tall and very, very fat man, so fat that it is a miracle that his legs can stand such huge body. The man hold a huge wooden club and has all his hair shaved.

_"This is Bolai."_ Tang says. _"He comes from Mongolia."_

Tang then points at a man of average height with long black hair and swarthy skin. He wears a long white teared robe and is unarmed.

_"This is Magnayara, an Indian Monk."_

Tang then points at a tall, muscular man with long black hair and a black scruffy beard that covers almost all of his face, with scars on his chest and back and wearing only brown trousers. The man is armed with two long swords.

_"This is Omar, a Turkic warrior from the Turkish Khaganate. So, So, which one will you fight first?"_

_"I have no problem fighting all three of them together."_

_"But that would be unfair and I would be accused of bullying you. "_

_"Then, choose one of your warriors to fight me."_

_"Alright. I choose...Bolai!"_

Bolai charges towards So with his huge wooden club. Although he is very fat, Bolai is able to move very fast, and although the club is very heavy, Bolai wields it with ease. So, using his pipe, blocks the attack and kicks with his right leg Bolai's stomach. However, Bolai seems to not be bothered at all about this and continues his attacks. So tries to block again the club with his pipe, but the pipe is broken and So is able to dodge the deadly attack in the last second.

_"Bolai, stop!"_ Tang shouts. He then turn to So _"Please, take an other weapon. I want this fight to be fair. But, if you lose again, I will not show you any mercy."_

_"Very well."_

So goes to his house and returns a few minutes later holding a long Jian, a double-edged straight sword, which is carved from a single solid piece of jade. The blade is 80 centimeters (31 inches) in length. The weight of the sword is approximately 900 grams (2 pounds). A hilt protects the hand of wielder from an opposing blade. The shape of the hilt is short wings pointing forward. A handle behind the hilt accommodates the grip of one hand plus two fingers of the other hand.

The end of the handle is finished with a pommel for balance, to prevent the handle from sliding through the hand if the hand's grip should be loosened, and for striking or trapping the opponent as opportunity required — such as in "withdrawing" techniques. The blade itself is divided into three sections for leverage in different offensive and defensive techniques. The tip of the blade is the jiànfeng, meant for stabbing, slashing, and quick percussive cuts. The jiànfeng curves smoothly to a point. The middle section is the zhongren and is used for a variety of offensive and defensive actions: cleaving cuts, draw cuts, and deflections. The section of blade closest to the hilt is the jiàngen and is mainly used for defensive actions. The blade features subtle profile taper (decreasing width). Upon the Jade Sword, a red Dragon is carved.

_"This is the 'Red Jade Dragon Sword'!"_ So says. _"I will fight with this."_

_"Wow!" _Tang, impressed, shouts. _"That's quite a sword."_

Bolai attacks once again with his wooden club. His first attack is blocked by the jiàngen part So's Jade Sword. Bolai attacks again but his club is deflected by the zhongren part of the Jade Sword. So, then, goes on the offensive and uses the tip of the blade, jiànfeng, to slash thrice Bolai's chest. He then uses again the jiànfeng to stab Bolai's stomach, causing him to let his wooden club fall on the ground. So then quickly kicks twice Bolai's head and with a swift move cuts off the man's head with his blade.

Tang, clapping and laughing, says _"Impressive! But how well will you fare against Omar?"_

Omar, holding is his hands his two long swords, charges at So. So, with swift moves, uses his blade to deflect and block Omar's attacks. But Omar continues with fury to attack. Omar's swordplay is very aggressive and he uses quite a lot of strength. So decides to retreat back and Omar runs towards him. So then counterattacks: he uses zhongren to slash and cut Omar's chest, but Omar continues his attacks. Omar attacks with his left sword and So dodges it just in time. He then uses both swords, one after the other, to attack. So, unable to deflect both swords at the same time, retreats back. As he retreats, he falls on the ground. He quickly gets up and realizes why he had fallen: he had stepped on a wooden stick. He grabs it and, now with two weapons, is ready to face Omar. Omar attacks again with his two swords, but So uses his Jade Sword to block his left sword and his wooden stick to block his right sword. He then kicks Omar with a powerful kick on the throat, killing him.

Tang, once again clapping, says _"You are indeed very skillful. But this time, your victory was harder, right?"_

_"Bah, I was just a bit tired."_

_"Well, this is bad, because Magnayara, the Indian Monk, is quite skillful."_

So puts down his weapons and is ready to face unarmed Magnayara, who is also unarmed. The duel begins with Magnayara attacking So using a flying kick, which So dodges in the last moment. Magnayara then punches his palms on So's chest. His palms have immense strength and send So, literally flying, back and cause him to fall on the ground. So gets up fast but vomits blood.

_"This...is...the...the...Palm of Death!"_ Magnayara, with the little Chinese he knows, tries to say.

So starts laughing. Tang, curious and surprised, asks _"Why do you laugh?"_

_"Because of how stupid that name is!" _So, laughing, shouts. _"It cannot kill a fly, let alone a man!"_

Magnayara, furious, charges at So. He tries to kick him again and again, but So dodges all of the kicks. Magnayara then jumps on the air, falls down very fast and with immense strength hits from above So's head with his right elbow. So's head is almost broken and he is bleeding. All of his face is covered with blood. However, instead of shouting in pain, So laughs.

_"Why do you laugh?!"_ Tang, furious, shouts.

_"I laugh at how weak Indian martial arts are!"_ So replies.

_"Are you kidding me or what? He almost broke your head!"_

_"But he did not break it. If he had trained in the Chinese 'Divine Elbow', he would had already broken my head with the same move."_

Magnayara attacks once again So using his legs, but So dodges again and again Magnayara's attacks. After a few minutes, So grabs Magnayara's right leg and, using his elbow, breaks it. Magnayara falls on the ground and So punches his palms on Magnayara's chest. Magnayara vomits blood and dies.

_"This is a real Palm of Death!"_ So, laughing, shouts.

_"Very...very...impressive!"_ Tang, furious and unable to stay calm, replies. _"Now, you will face me and my 'Fan of Death'! Pick a weapon!"_

So, calmly, picks up the wooden stick he had previously used against Omar.

_"This is my weapon, kid!"_ So say.

Tang attacks swiftly and furiously So using his hand fan. So dodges, with great difficulty, Tang's attacks. Tang continues to attack, even faster, and So continues to dodge Tang's attacks. The whole fight seems like a dance. The fast movements of Tang's fan creates a 'ssss' like sound. So decides to go on the offensive and attacks with his stick Tang. Tang, using his fan, tries to deflect and block So's attacks, but after a few minutes is overwhelmed. So passes through his defense and hits him on the head, causing him to let his fan fall on the ground.

So, laughing at how easy he had defeated Tang, says _"Each one of your warriors is far more eligible than you in becoming leader of the pugilist world. Kid, go back to your home and train more. Or, even better, give up martial arts and save yourself from humiliation."_

Tang, furious, pulls out a dagger from his sleeve and throws it at So, stabbing him on the chest. He then pulls out an other dagger and charges towards So, but So dodges the attacks, grabs Tang from the hair and punches with all his strength his right fist on Tang's face, killing him.


	13. Falling in Love in the Inn

_Wuchang, Capital of the Southland_

Liu Bei has just arrived to the Capital of the Southland, Wuchang, accompanied only by his loyal officer, Zhou Yun. Following Zhuge Liang's secret instructions, Liu Bei starts buying as many gifts as possible for his future wife, many of them very expensive. Thus, he has got the attention of all residents of Wuchang, and now pretty much everyone in the city knows about the marriage. This is bad for Sun Quan, since Sun Shangxiang, his sister, had not been informed of the marriage, as Zhou Yu had planned to kill Liu Bei before the marriage taking place. Also, Sun Shangxiang, who is fierce in nature and a very skilled martial artist, would never agree to marry such an aged man. Liu Bei is in his mid-fifties, and although he is quite good looking for his age, Sun Shangxiang has never met him, so she thinks of him as an old man. After Liu Bei buying almost everything valuable in the city, Sun Shangxiang calls Sun Quan to her room. Sun Shangxiang is a very, very beautiful young lady, only 18 years old, with long black hair, skin as white as snow, green eyes and an elegance beyond convention. But she also looks fierce, especially when practicing her swordplay. When Sun Quan enters his sister's room, he sees her furious. Sun Shangxiang is the only person that Sun Quan fears. Despite being Lord of the Southland, he is unable to do anything when his sister is furious.

_"Sister..."_ Sun Quan tries to say, but not being able to speak calmly because of fearing the rage of his sister. _"What...do...do...you...want?"_

_"How could you arrange for me to marry an old man without me even knowing about it?!" _Sun Shangxiang shouts while throwing a porcelain vase on Sun Quan, who barely manages to avoid it. _"Do you think I will marry an old man?!"_

_"Sister...you...I...him...Zhou Yu...I...I mean..." _Sun Quan tries to explain himself, but cannot utter a single sentence.

_"What?! Do you dare to talk back to me?!"_

Sun Shangxiang throws an other vase at Sun Quan, who manages to avoid it in the last second.

_"Sister, please calm down. It is not as tragic as you portray it."_

_"What?!"_

_"You were not going to marry him anyway."_

_"Then why did you propose my marriage to him?"_

_"It is a trick devised by Zhou Yu. We would kill him before the marriage."_

_"But, now that everyone knows of the marriage, my reputation will be damaged beyond repair. Who will marry me in the future?"_

_"Sister, you should think of the Southland, which is more important than...than..."_

_"More important than my happiness?"_

_"Yes!"_

_"I will kill myself if you force me to marry this old man!"_

_"But..."_

_"There is no 'but'! Either cancel the marriage or I will kill myself!"_

_"But...this cannot happen!"_

_"You! You put yourself and your political machinations above your own sister! You are a monster!"_

_"Sister...calm down."_

_"I will not calm down!"_

Sun Shangxiang starts crying and bows before her brother. _"Brother, do not force me to marry him."_

_"I..."_

_"I understand. You love for power is far larger than your love for your sister."_

_"Why do we not make an agreement? When Liu Bei comes to the Palace tomorrow, you will hide and watch him. If you like him, you will play your flute and you will marry him. If not, I will cancel the marriage."_

_"Alright!"_

Sun Quan leaves, delighted, the room. If his sister does not like Liu Bei, then not only he will cancel the marriage, but he will have Zhou Yu and his troops to ambush and kill Liu Bei. Although his sister's reputation may be tarnished, he will have killed his greatest enemy.

_Late in the night, Mao's inn_

Sun Shangxiang, late in the night, and dressed with a black silk robe, enters Mao's inn. Being a martial artist and hating being closed inside the palace with nothing to do, Sun Shangxiang sneaks out of the Palace in the night and drinks in inns and chats with other pugilists, dressed as a simple martial artist, instead of wearing a Princess' clothes. When she enters the inn, which is open in night because many martial artists have the habit of drinking and chatting in the night, the place has five companies chatting and drinking, all of them martial artists. There is also a man sitting alone and drinking some wine. Sun Shangxiang sits on a table and orders wine. The waiter serves the wine immediately. Sun Shangxiang waits for her martial artist friends to come and chat with her. She needs to tell to someone how bad she feels about her forced marriage to Liu Bei. As she drinks her wine and waits for her friends, she hears someone shouting. A tall muscular man, who is sitting on a table along with three other men, shouts at the waiter: _"What?! You want us to pay?"_

_"But, sir..." _the waiter tries to say. The man slaps him.

_"I will not pay anything!"_

Sun Shangxiang gets up, approaches the man, pulls out her _dadao_ long sword and says _"You will pay or you will have to battle me!"_

_"Men!" _the man shouts at his three friends. _"Attack her!"_

The three men pull out their swords and charge at Sun Shangxiang. The first man tries to cut off Sun Shangxiang's head, but she dodges the attack and stabs him on the heart, killing him. The other two men attack at the same time, but Sun Shangxiang jumps on the air, avoiding their attack, and when she lands on the ground, she cuts off the second man's head with a swift move and kicks the third man on his genetic organs, causing him to fall on the ground.

The leader of the thugs shouts _"Fight me without sword!"_

_"Alright!" _Sun Shangxiang replies and puts away her sword.

The man tries to kick thrice Sun Shangxiang, but she blocks all his kicks. The man then punches his right fist on Sun Shangxiang's chest, causing her to fall back.

_"Quite good Kung Fu!"_ the man, laughing, says.

But Sun Shangxiang is quick to counterattack. When the man charges at her, she kicks him on the head with a powerful back kick. She then punches her fists ten times on the man's face, breaking his nose. Her moves are swift, fast and coordinated like a chain. The man grabs a table and throws it at Sun Shangxiang, but she dodges it and then fly kicks the man's chest, causing him to fall back and vomit huge amounts of blood. Seeing that he cannot defeat his enemy, the man runs away. The waiter approaches Sun Shangxiang and says _"Thank you Miss!"_

_"It's nothing." _she replies. _"Defending the weak is the duty of all martial artists."_

Suddenly, the man who is sitting alone gets up, comes towards Sun Shangxiang and, clapping, says _"My lady, you are a true heroine! You are skilled in the sword and the martial arts, but you also have an admirable character and courage. Would you give me the honor of sitting with me and drinking some wine together?"_

Sun Shangxiang looks at the man, who is very elegant in his ways and very handsome. He seems to be in his 30's. His way of speaking impresses Sun Shangxiang, who thinks that the man must be either a scholar or a fellow pugilist. But, without knowing it, the man who is speaking to her is Liu Bei.

_"I will sit with you!"_ Sun Shangxiang replies.

_"Good! We can chat all night! Waiter, bring us the best wine you have!"_

Liu Bei and Sun Shangxiang, not knowing each others identity, sit together and chat about several subjects.

_"My lady."_ Liu Bei says. _"Your swordplay is one of the best I have seen. But your beauty and character are unparalleled"_

_"You are flattering me."_

_"Not at all."_

_"Why are you drinking here all alone?"_

_"I have many worries. I believe that this may be the end of me. But it is a danger I am willing to undertake in order to restore the Han Dynasty to it's former glory!"_

_"The Han Dynasty?"_

_"Yes. So many noble families have been benefited for centuries by the Han Emperors, but once crisis arose, they rebelled against their Emperor. They rule the lands that belong to the Han Dynasty like they own them. Cao Cao, the great villain and traitor, has put the Han Emperor under house arrest and humiliates him, respecting neither protocol nor tradition. The Emperor is oppressed and a mere puppet. The mission of my life is to restore the glory of the Han Empire. If I do not restore it, I will have let down everyone, and especially my ancestors. That is why I am willing to come here, despite that my life is in danger."_

_"Who would kill you?! I will protect you!"_

_"You have only known me for a short time. Why would you risk your life for me?"_

_"I consider you my friend. And even thought we know each other only a short time, I am willing to die defending you!"_

_"Such character! Such courage! Such chivalry! You are such an admirable lady, far more admirable than many men!"_

_"And you have such an admirable character too! Even thought everyone has betrayed the Han Emperor, even his most close relatives, you remain loyal to him and you risk your life for him."_

_"I do not do this only for the Emperor. I also do this because only if the Han Dynasty is restored to it's former glory and peace comes to the land will the common people be able to live a peaceful live without having to be afraid of their life and being abused by the rich!"_

_"I will drink in honor of you, a true gentleman who has his Emperor and the people in his heart and is willing to die for them! Cheers!"_

_"Cheers!"_

As Liu Bei and Sun Shangxiang drink the wine, the pugilist friends of Sun Shangxiang enter the inn. Seeing them, Sun Shangxiang decides to leave Liu Bei and go chat with them.

_"Master."_ Sun Shangxiang says. _"I am sorry to offend you, but I need to chat with my friends."_

_"You do not offend me at all. I only hope that I can meet you again."_

_"If fate wants us to meet again, we shall meet again."_

Sun Shangxiang leaves and Liu Bei stays once again alone. He is even sadder now than before. Before he was only sad because he could be killed before his quest of restoring the Han Dynasty to it's former glory could be fulfilled. Now, he is also sad because, although he knows that woman for such a short time, it seems that he has fallen in love with her. But, he will have to marry Sun Shangxiang in order to maintain the alliance with Sun Quan. The Han Dynasty is more important than his feelings. Not to say that he does not even know the name of that lady and who she is and if she is already in love with an other man. But, somehow, he feels a genuine love for her. Although he has known her for such a short time, he loves her far more than his previous wives. This may not seem logical, but this exactly how Liu Bei feels. A few minutes later, Liu Bei goes to upstairs to his room, to rest because tomorrow he will have to go to the Southland Palace. He can only hope that Zhuge Liang's plan to making known to everyone about the marriage will force Sun Quan to reconsider any thoughts of assassinating him, in order to save his sister's reputation.

Meanwhile, Sun Shangxiang and her friends, three men and one woman, all martial artists, chat. After chatting for several hours about her forced marriage, one of them asks _"Who was that man you were chatting with?"_

_"Chatting with?" _Sun Shangxiang, not remembering, asks. _"Now I remember! He is a true gentleman. He is handsome, loyal, cares for the people, is loyal to the Han Emperor, is elegant, speaks with great oratory skill. If only I could marry such a man instead of that old Liu Bei!"_

_"But you brother said that if you do not like him, you will not marry him."_

_"It is not this my only problem. My brother wants to assassinate him, something that will ruin my reputation and no man will want to marry me."_

_"Then you must stop your brother from killing him."_

A few hours later, Sun Shangxiang's room

Sun Shangxiang, after hours of chatting with her friends, sneaks into the Palace and goes to her room without anyone noticing her. As she enters the room, she thinks of the man she had met and shouts _"How stupid I am! Why I did not ask his name?!"_

Sun Shangxiang feels that she is in love with that man. She cannot explain how she is so in love with a man she spend only a few minutes together. But she has fallen in love for him. If only she could marry that man instead of Liu Bei, she thinks.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

To awesomeness: Firstly, thanks for the reviews. Secondly, no. I have only DW7, although I have not played it for almost a year because my PS3 has a problem and does not accept game disks, so now I only use it to watch movies or YouTube videos.


	14. Battle in the Southland Palace

_Southland Palace, Wuchang, Capital of the Southland_

Liu Bei (_courtesy name: Xuande_), accompanied only by his loyal and brave General Zhou Yun, comes to the Southland Palace in order to meet Sun Quan (_courtesy name: Zhongmou_), Lord of the Southland, and Zhou Yu (_courtesy name: Gongjin_), Grand Commander of the Southland, and talk with them about his marriage with Sun Quan's sister Sun Shangxiang. When Liu Bei arrives at the entrance of the huge and magnificent Southland Palace, which is made by very fine marble, he is met by twenty Southland soldiers, all armed with swords and every fifth of them holding a Southland banner. The Palace is indeed magnificent. Around the Palace, there is a wall, inclosing a compass of 16 miles, and inside the Palace there is a Park, in which there are fountains and rivers and brooks, and beautiful meadows, with all kinds of wild animals. Moreover at a spot in the Park, Sun Quan has another Palace built of cane. It is gilt all over, and most elaborately finished inside. It is stayed on gilt and lacquered columns, on each of which is a dragon all gilt, the tail of which is attached to the column whilst the head supports the architrave, and the claws likewise are stretched out right and left to support the architrave.

A Southland soldier approaches Liu Bei and says _"Please, follow us."_

_"Of course." _Liu Bei replies.

As Liu Bei, Zhou Yun and the Southland soldiers walk towards the Throne Room through the long marble stairs of the Palace, which are on the entrance and lead directly to the Throne Room, Liu Bei thinks about the woman he met yesterday night at Mao's inn. He cannot stop thinking of her. That lady was honorable, beautiful, with great character and bravery and outstanding martial arts. If only he could marry her instead of Sun Shangxiang. But, he knows that this is impossible. He also knows that the restoration of the Han Dynasty to it's former glory is far more important than any woman. He cannot let down his ancestors. He cannot let down his people. He cannot let down his Emperor. He prefers to suffer and live an unhappy life than give up his quest of restoring the Han Dynasty. He must free the Emperor from the tyrant, usurper and traitor Cao Cao. And in order to do this, he must marry Sun Shangxiang, so he can maintain the crucial alliance with Sun Quan.

When Liu Bei and Zhou Yun arrive at the Throne Room, they find Sun Quan, dressed with a yellow robe made of silver and decorated with gems, sitting on his Golden Throne. Besides him, there is Zhou Yu and other five Southland Generals. The Room is guarded by more than sixty Southland soldiers, all armed with swords and with every tenth of them holding a Southland banner. When Sun Quan sees Liu Bei, he gets up and rushes towards him.

_"Brother Xuande!"_ Sun Quan, smiling, shouts. _"I have long heard of you, but never had the honor to meet you until now. Now, that I have met you, I feel very honored."_

_"Brother Zhongmou!" _Liu Bei replies. _"It is also my honor to meet such an outstanding man like you."_

_"Good. Let us talk about your marriage to my sister."_

_Sun Shangxiang's room_

Princess Sun Shangxiang is waiting in her room for her maid to inform her when Liu Bei will come. She has made an agreement with her brother that she will watch Liu Bei in secret while he talks with him and play her flute if she likes him. If not, Sun Quan will cancel the marriage. As Sun Shangxiang waits for her maid, she cannot stop thinking about the man she had met yesterday in Mao's inn. _"Could such a man really exist?"_ she thinks. _"A man so loyal to his Emperor and the people, so willing to die in order to restore the Han Dynasty to it's former glory, so good orator, so handsome."_

Sun Shangxiang had not stopped thinking about that man since yesterday night. She feels a love for him that he has not ever felt for an other man. If only he could marry him instead of Liu Bei. Suddenly, a young maid enters the room and says _"My Lady, Liu Bei has arrived."_

Sun Shangxiang leaves her room and heads, along with her maid, towards a small room that is beside the Southland Throne Room and allows them to see what is happening in the Throne Room. When they arrive, the maid looks at what is happening at the Throne Room and is amazed with Liu Bei.

_"My Lady!"_ the maid shouts. _"Liu Bei does not look at all like he is at his mid-fifties. He looks like he is in his thirties and is very handsome."_

_"Really?" _Sun Shangxiang, surprised, asks and takes a look herself. But when she sees Liu Bei, she is ever more surprised. Liu Bei is in fact the man she had met in Mao's inn and had fallen in love with. She cannot believe it.

Meanwhile, in the Throne Room, Sun Quan and Liu Bei discuss about the marriage.

_"Brother Xuande!"_ Sun Quan says. _"My sister is a very outstanding woman and I believe that she will be a great match with you."_

_"Brother, I hope that this marriage will solidify our alliance and make it everlasting. For we must be united in order to restore the Han Dynasty to it's former glory. The Han Emperor is imprisoned and humiliated, the common people know no peace and are bullied by the rich and strong, the lands of the Han Dynasty have become personal feuds of Warlords. What sorrow! What sorrow to see the 400 years old Han Dynasty collapsing and no one even caring! What sorrow to see traitors prevailing over patriots! What sorrow to see treachery defeating loyalism! What sorrow! What sorrow! What sorrow! Brother, for years your family has been rewarded by the Han Emperor. You must not forget that! We should be united like real brothers in our war against the traitor and usurper Cao Cao!"_

Although Sun Quan wants to assassinate Liu Bei, he is still impressed and moved by his words. Liu Bei has a loyalty to his Emperor and his people that Sun Quan is envious of.

_Outside the Walls of the Southland Palace_

Meanwhile, Chan and Kuang try to find a way to sneak into the Palace and protect Liu Bei from Sun Quan and Zhou Yu. Chan must not fail his friend, Zhuge Liang. As they see the huge walls surrounding the Palace, the two friends do not know what to do.

_"Hell!"_ Kuang curses. _"How will we be able to sneak into the Palace?"_

_"We must find a way to get past the walls!" _Chan shouts. _"But what way?"_

As the two men try to find a way to sneak into the Palace, they see two Southland soldiers, one of them a lieutenant, walking towards the Palace. While no one is near, Chan says _"I've found a way!"_ and charges at the two men. Kuang, understanding Chan's plans, also charges.

The Southland lieutenant, seeing Chan charging towards him, pulls out his sword and tries to kill Chan, but he dodges the attacks and kicks the man's chest, pushing him back and causing him to let his sword fall down. The lieutenant quickly gets up and fly kicks Chan's stomach. He then punches his fists twice on Chan's face, but when he tries to punch a third time his fists, Chan avoids the man's fists and back kicks the man's face with such a powerful kick that the man is killed.

At the same time, Kuang battles the other Southland soldier. The soldier tries to cut off Kuang's head with his sword, but Kuang dodges the attack, grabs the man's head by the hair and breaks it on his right knee. With the two soldiers dead, Chan and Kuang take off their clothes and disguise themselves as Southland soldiers. They then rush towards the Gate of the Palace Walls, which is guarded by three Southland soldiers. One of them approaches the two heroes and says _"What do you want?"_

_"We have been requested by our Lord, His Excellency Sun Quan, to go to the Throne Room." _Chan replies.

_"For what reason?"_

_"To help him in his plans about Liu Bei."_

_"Alright. You can go inside the Palace!"_

Chan and Kuang enter the Palace Gate and then run as fast as they can towards the Throne Room. After a few minutes, they arrive at the Throne Room. Seeing them, Sun Quan stops talking with Liu Bei and approaches them.

_"What are you doing?!"_ Sun Quan, angry, asks.

_"Sir."_ Kuang replies, while he and Chan kowtow before Sun Quan. _"We have been asked to come here to make sure that you and your honored guest are safe."_

_"Alright. Go and take your positions along with the other soldiers!"_

Sun Quan then talks once again with Liu Bei.

_"I am sorry that I have such idiots for my soldiers."_ Sun Quan says.

_"You are underestimating your brave soldiers, Brother."_ Liu Bei replies.

At the same time, Sun Shangxiang is able to get over her shock of realizing that the man she had fallen in love in Mao's inn was Liu Bei. So, she starts playing her flute. The sound of her flute is magical and bewitches even the most uninterested in music men. The sound of her flute just cannot be described in words. Liu Bei, hearing the flute, shouts _"What a magnificent flute play! What beautiful sound!"_

Sun Quan, knowing that this means that Sun Shangxiang has agreed to marry Liu Bei, thus ruining his plans, is devastated. He will have to give his sister to Liu Bei. But, Zhou Yu is not willing to let his plan fail because of his Lord's sister. So, he approaches a fat Southland General called Bin Lao and says to him _"Order the men to attack!"_

Zhou Yu does this so, in case something goes wrong or Sun Quan decides to agree to the marriage, he will not be blamed but Bin Lao. Indeed, Bin Lao shouts _"Men, attack!"_ and more than forty Southland soldiers surround Liu Bei and charge at him with their swords. Liu Bei shouts _"Sun Quan, what is happening?!"_

_"Brother!" _Sun Quan replies. _"I did not plan this! Stop, everyone!"_

But the soldiers are ignoring their Lord and Bin Lao bows before Sun Quan and says _"Sorry, my Lord, but for your own good, we will kill this bastard!"_

Sun Shangxiang, seeing the soldiers attacking the man she loves, pulls out her long _dadao_ sword and charges at the Southland soldiers. Seeing her, Liu Bei shouts _"You!"_. He just cannot believe that the woman he had fallen in love with suddenly appears in the Southland Throne Room.

_"Sister!"_ Sun Quan, worrying over his sister's safety, shouts.

_"So, you are Lady Sun Shangxiang?"_ Liu Bei, surprised, asks.

_"Yes."_ Sun Shangxiang replies. _"It is my honor that I can marry such a chivalrous man like you."_

_"It is also my honor that I can marry such a chivalrous Lady like you!"_

As the two lovers talk, Zhou Yun pulls out his sword and starts killing Southland soldiers who charge. He dismembers them, cuts off their heads, their chests, their legs, stabs them in the heart and even kills them with his kicks. He kills them with every way possible. Meanwhile, with Sun Shangxiang's appearance, Sun Quan shouts _"Stop!"_. His soldiers, realizing that if anything happens to their Lord's sister, he will not forgive them, stop. Sun Quan then approaches Zhou Yu and orders _"Brother Gongjin, take this Bin Lao, who had such stupid ideas and tried to kill my Brother, and behead him!"_

_"Yes, sir!" _Zhou Yu replies and orders his men to grab Bin Lao and take him for execution. Chan and Kuang, who were ready to charge against the Southland soldiers and save Liu Bei, seeing that the attack stopped, walk slowly outside the Throne Room, taking advantage of the chaos that the attack caused.

Sun Quan approaches Liu Bei and says _"Brother, please forgive me for this."_

_"I know that you have good intentions and did not plan this. So, there is not need to ask for forgiveness. You are my brother in law now. So, we are family and we will have to be united."_

_A few hours later, in Mao's inn_

Chan and Kuang, having done their duty, come to Mao's inn to drink some wine and chat. They sit on a wooden table at the back side of the inn and chat while drinking good Southland wine.

_"Brother Kuang!"_ Chan says. _"Now that I have repaid Liu Bei's kindness and helped my friend, Zhuge Liang, I can at last return to my carefree life."_

_"Good! We should go back to our teacher as soon as possible. He may teach us his 'Crane and Tiger' Kung Fu style."_

As the two men talk, three thugs, all muscular, enter the inn and one of them says to Mao, the innkeeper, _"We've heard that someone wants to destroy your inn. If you pay us, we can offer you protection."_

_"I have no need for protection." _Mao replies.

_"Then, we shall burn this place to the ground!"_

Chan, seeing this, gets up and says to Kuang _"Our teacher said that we should use our Kung Fu to fight injustice and help the poor and the weak."_

Kuang understands what Chan means and also gets up, and the two men approach the thugs. The leader of the thugs says _"What do you want?!"_

_"I want you to stop bullying the weak!" _Chan shouts.

_"Then, I shall bully you!"_

The man tries to punch his fist on Chan, but Chan blocks the man's attack, kicks twice the stomach of the man and then punches his right elbow on the man's face killing him. At the same time, the other two men attack Kuang. Kuang kills the first man with a powerful kick on the lungs and the second by punching his fists fifty times on the man's stomach. Seeing the two heroes' excellent Kung Fu, a man, clapping and smiling, approaches them. The man is tall, with long black hair, an aristocratic look and wears a black silk robe.

_"Excellent Kung Fu!"_ the man says. _"I, Wong, would like to sit with you and drink some wine."_

_"We would be more than happy to have you in our company!" _Chan replies.


	15. Wanted

_Mao's Inn, Wuchang, Capital of the Southland_

Chan and Kung drink wine and chat in Mao's inn with Wong, a man who, after being very impressed with how the two heroes beat up some thugs, joined their company. For hours, they talk about several subjects, until Wong decides that it is the right time to tell them why he joined their company.

_"Chan and Kuang!"_ Wong, smiling, says. _"Have you heard of Wao, Governor of Wuchang?"_

_"I have heard about him." _Kuang replies. _"He is very loved by the people, he is loyal to his Lord, is one of the few Southland Governors to have never been accused of corruption and so, he is very respected in the pugilist world."_

_"Indeed. I, Wong, have been working for five years for Governor Wao. The Governor needs some bodyguards. After witnessing your amazing Kung Fu, I believe that you are the best persons to take on this job."_

_"I am sorry, but I will have to refuse." _Chan answers. _"I like to live a carefree life. Not to say that there are many better Martial Artists than us."_

_"Indeed." _Kuang agrees.

_"But, why do you not at least come with me to meet Governor Wao?"_ Wong asks. _"You may change your opinion if you talk with him."_

_"But..." _Chan tries to say, but he is interrupted by Wong, who says _"No need to be shy. Governor Wao will be very pleased to meet talents like you."_

_Governor Wao's Office_

Chan and Kuang, unwillingly, decide to follow Wong and meet with Governor Wao. Wao, because of his good and wise governance, has gained the respect of many pugilist heroes, including the Great Tao Sect of Fong Yuen and the Buddhist Society Sect of the Three Kung Fu Emperors. Chan and Kuang enters Wao's office along with Wong. When they enter, Wao is sitting in his office and is reading some economic reports. There are no bodyguards inside the office. Wao is a middle-aged man, in his late fifties, with grey hair and beard. He is a bit short and does not look very muscular, although he is slim. He wears clothes made of silk. When Wao sees Wong and his two guests, he gets up and approaches them.

_"Who are those two young men?"_ Wao asks Wong.

_"They are great talents, my lord."_ Wong replies. _"They are very able pugilists. Their Kung Fu is excellent."_

_"Good. What are their names?"_

_"Chan and Kuang."_

_"I am pleased to meet you." _Chan says.

_"Me too."_ Kuang adds.

_"I am also very pleased to meet new talents."_ Wao replies. _"I shall make you my bodyguards."_

_"But.." _Chan tries to protest, but before he can, something happens that changes the entire situation.

Wong pulls out a knife and stabs twice Wao on the stomach. Wao vomits huge amount of blood and dies, with his last words being _"You...tr...tra...trai...traitor!"_. Before Chan and Kuang can react, Wong stabs himself on the chest with the knife and, bleeding, shouts _"Help, assassins!"_. Suddenly, four bodyguards, all very, very muscular and with scars all over their faces and bodies, enter the office. Seeing their Master dead and Wong stabbed, they assume that Chan and Kuang are the assassins and attack them.

The first bodyguards kicks Chan's chest, but when he tries to kick Chan a second time, he dodges the kick. He then uses Ku of the 'Ku Wai Zheng Fung technique'. He jumps on the air, lands behind the man and kicks him with a very powerful back kick on the back, causing him to spit blood and fall on the ground. The second bodyguard grabs a chair and breaks it on Chan's head. Chan, feeling dizzy, is pushed back. The man charges at him, but Chan blocks the attack using his left palm and then grabs a nearby porcelain vase and breaks it on the man's head. The man's head starts bleeding. Chan then kicks thrice the man's stomach and, as the man is pushed back, grabs a chair and hits with it the bodyguard five times, killing him. Meanwhile, Kuang battles the other two bodyguards. The first of them pulls out a knife and tries to stab Kuang, but Kuang dodges twice the knife and then grabs the man by the hair and punches his head on the office's wall, breaking it and killing him. He then grabs the, now dead, man's knife and throws it at the second bodyguard's chest, killing him.

The two men rush out of the office, but as they are about to leave by the main entrance, two bodyguards stop them. The first tries to hit Chan, but Chan kicks him on his genetic organs and then punches his fists thirty times on the man's face. The man's face becomes red with blood and his nose and most of his teeth are broken. Chan finishes him off by digging out his eyes with his "Two Deadly Fingers". The second bodyguard rushes against Kuang, but he punches his right palm on the man's chest. During his attack with his palm, Kuang recites lines from Ancient Martial Arts Manuals originating from the Spring and Autumn Period, which he and Chan learned from Beggar So, and concentrates all his internal energy on his palm. Thus, while Kuang's internal strength is not as strong as Chan's, the palm has considerable strength and is able to cause internal injuries. So, the man is pushed back, falls on the ground and, when he tries to get up, vomits blood and dies. With their enemies dead, the two heroes leave the office of Wao.

_White Crane Village, three days distance from Wuchang_

Chan and Kuang, after being barely able to escape Wao's office, have left Wuchang, because it is not longer safe for them. They know that because Wao was a very loved and respected man, the price for their heads will be immensely high. And, indeed it is. One day after the murder of Wao, Sun Quan had his soldiers put posters all over Wuchang in which he declares that the man who bring Chan and Kuang to him, dead or alive, shall be rewarded 50,000 golden coins. As expected, hundreds of mercenaries, many of them Kung Fu experts are searching all over the Southland for Chan and Kuang.

When Chan and Kuang reach the White Crane Village, which is three days distance from Wuchang on foot, they go to an inn to rest. When they enter the inn, they find it largely empty. In fact, there is only the innkeeper, two men who are drinking some wine and a company of ten men, who seem to be very motionless, in the inn. Kuang and Chan sit on a table. Chan shouts _"bring us some wine!"_. The innkeeper seems to be ignoring them. In fact, he is standing still and does not move at all. Chan shouts two more times, but still the innkeeper seems to be ignoring them.

_"I will go and tell him what we want, because he may be deaf."_ Chan says.

_"Alright."_ Kuang replies.

Chan approaches the innkeeper. He touches his shoulder and, suddenly, the innkeeper falls on the ground. He was already dead, that's why he did not reply. Seeing this, Kuang gets up and approaches the company of the ten men. He touches each one of them on the shoulder, and they all fall down, revealing that they are dead. The innkeeper and the ten men do not have any sign of being injured. Meanwhile, the two men who drink their wine, laugh and chat. Chan and Kuang approach them. The first man is a man in his 30's with short black hair, a scruffy light beard, blue eyes and a handsome face. He wears a long black tattered poncho, black clothes and a conical hat, which hides his face. The second man is a short man with a funny and somewhat ugly face. He wears a white silk robe.

_"Do you know who killed those men?"_ Chan asks.

_"I did! Hahaha!"_ the man with the ugly face replies, while laughing. _"I am 'Poison Darts' Hung!"_

_"And I am 'Knife' Yang!" _the man with the scruffy light beard shouts.

_"Why did you kill them?"_ Kuang asks.

_"In order to kill you and take the reward! Hahaha!"_ Hung replies while at the same time throwing two poisonous darts at Kuang and Chan. The two heroes are barely able to dodge them in the last second. Yang and Hung, then, get up and charge against the two heroes.

Yang pulls out two knifes and tries to stab Chan with them. Chan is at first able to avoid them, but soon Yang stabs him twice on the stomach. As Chan shouts in pain, Yang says _"This is your reward for killing such a good man as Governor Wao!"_

_"But, I did not kill him!" _Chan shouts. _"Wong, who worked for Wao, killed him and stabbed himself."_

_"I do not believe you!"_

Yang pulls out knifes from his sleeves, one after the other, and throws them at Chan. Chan dodges them in the last moment. Yang then, armed with three knifes in each one of his hands, a total of six knifes, tries to stab Chan, who has no choice but to run for his life. As he runs, he stamps upon a wooden table, which he grabs and throws on Yang, but Yang avoids it. Chan the grabs the inn's chairs and starts throwing them one after the other on Yang. Yang, however, dodges them and approaches Chan fast. As Yang approaches Chan and is ready to stab him, Chan grabs once again a chair and hits with it Yang's head. This time, the chair was able to do it's job and Yang is pushed back and is feeling dizzy. Taking advantage of this, Chan starts kicking him mercilessly on the stomach, chest and face. Yang, bleeding, falls on the ground. Chan, instead of finishing him off, helps him get up and says to him _"I really did not kill Wao."_

_"Why...should...I...believe...you?" _Yang asks.

_"You can follow us and spy on Wong. Then, you shall discover that he is the one who killed Wao. If we lie to you, you can then kill us. And, anyway, if we were the real killers, I would have killed you now."_

_"Alright. I shall follow you. But, we must return to Wuchang as soon as possible, so we can spy on Wong and so, I can find out if you are telling the truth."_

_"Alright."_

Meanwhile, Kuang battles with Hung. Hung throws at Kuang several poisonous darts, but Kuang dodges them. Hung then shouts _"It's poison time!"_, pulls out some sand and throws it at Kuang. Kuang dodges it, but the table near him does not, and the table is quickly burned. Kuang then goes on the offensive, jumps on the air and kicks Hung's head with a very powerful flying kick, which kills Hung. Chan and Yang explain to Kuang about their agreement and are ready to leave, but, suddenly, more than 100 Southland soldiers, mostly spearmen, enter the inn and surround the three men, who are forced to surrender.

_A day later, Southland Jails, Wuchang_

Chan, Kuang and Yang are imprisoned and await a death sentence. They are held in nearby cells, but each man is alone in his cell and chained. Kuang, who is in the next cell to Chan's cell, says to Chan _"Hey, Chan! They are going to execute us today! If we do not find a way to leave, we will soon be dead."_

Chan, instead of replying, meditates, recites lines from Ancient Martial Arts Manuals and concentrates his internal energy. His teacher, Beggar So, had told him many times that he has immense internal strength. Then, after a few minutes, he starts shouting in pain. A Southland guard approaches the cell and asks _"What do you want?"_

_"I am in pain!"_

_"Ha! Do you think I will fall for such an old trick?!"_

_"I am really in pain!"_

_"Right!"_

_"What harm can I do to you, even if I am lying? I am unarmed and you are armed with a sword. Also, I am chained. So, I cannot move. Are you a coward?"_

_"Of course not!"_

The guard enters the cell and approaches Chan, but Chan, using his internal strength, is able to break the chains and, now free, punches his right palm on the man's chest. The man vomits blood and dies. Chan takes off the guard's clothes and dresses with them. He also takes the guard's keys. He opens Kuang's and Yang's cells. Now, that they are free, they head towards the main entrance of the jails, in order to leave, but Yang asks _"How are we going to get out? We do not have guard's clothes like you."_

_"You will pretend that you are my prisoners." _Chan replies.

And so, the three heroes head at the jails' gate. There, a guard stops them.

_"What are you doing?"_ the guard asks.

_"I am moving some prisoners."_ Chan replies.

_"Alright. Move, move!"_

The three men leave the jails and then run as fast as they can, before the Southland guards realize their mistake.

_Two days later, Dragon Mountain, Buddhist Society Sect_

A young aristocratic man wearing a blue silk robe enters in the Dragon Mountain Temple, the headquarters of the Buddhist Society Sect, which is upon the Dragon Mountain. The Buddhist Society Sect is the main Buddhist Sect of China and controls all Buddhist Monks in China. Many of the Buddhist Monks are skilled in martial arts and have developed several Kung Fu styles. The leaders of the Sect are the Three Holy Abbots, three Buddhist Monks of old age, but with chivalrous character, wisdom and great virtue, who are also known as the Three Kung Fu Emperors, because their Kung Fu is the best in the world and it is said that only Fong Yuen, Abbot of the Great Tao Sect, can rival them. A young Buddhist Monk approaches the man. He wears a yellow robe and has his hair shaved in Buddhist manner.

_"Sir, what do you want?"_ the Buddhist Monk asks.

_"I want to see the Three Holy Abbots."_ the young man replies.

_"Sir, do you know that for many years they have been in seclusion and do not interfere with worldly affairs?"_

_"I know. Tell them that I am Wuji, son of Governor Wao."_

_"I will tell them."_

The Buddhist Monk leaves and, after ten minutes, the Three Holy Abbots come to meet Wuji. The Abbots are very old, with their hair shaved in Buddhist manner and have long white beards. They wear a yellow robe and, upon that, a smaller red one, which shows that they are Buddhist elders. The Three Abbots are Kang, who is the eldest of them, Rong and Jiajing.

_"Young boy."_ Kang says. _"How is your father?"_

_"He...he...has been brutally murdered!"_

_What?!" _all three Abbots shout.

_"Who could do something like this?"_ Jiajing asks. _"Who could be so cruel as to kill such a respected and loved ruler? Who?"_

_"Two young men!" _Wuji replies. _"They pretended that they wanted to become my father's bodyguards and murdered him. My father's friend and worker, Wong, was also stabbed by them and seriously injured."_

_"What audacity!" _Rong shouts. _"We shall help you correct this injustice!"_

So, Chan, Kuang and Yang, will have to face the three greatest martial artists in the whole of China.


	16. Three Kung Fu Emperors

_Chongyang Temple, headquarters of the Great Tao Sect_

Yao Jing and Liao Xiang, the two students of Abbot Fong Yuen, train their swordplay in a small hill just outside the Chongyang Temple. The hill is green with grass. The air is cool, too. The clouds cover the sun in the sky, even thought it is midday. Fong Yuen, after the failure of his students in assassinating Zhuge Liang, had them to train hard. While Xiang has not improved much, Jing has immensely improved his martial arts. However, Jing has not choice but to be Xiang's puppet, since if he refuses to obey him, Xiang will tell Fong Yuen about the night Jing had spend with a prostitute.

Both Jing and Xiang move their swords with speed and great prowess. Especially Jing who has mastered his teacher's 'Tao Swordplay' and is able to combine slowness with speed and softness with prowess. He has also been able to transfer his internal energy to the sword, making it far more powerful. Jing has even improved his Qinggong skill, allowing him to move swiftly and lightly at almost superhuman speed, and perform deeds like scaling high walls and mounting trees. As the two men train, a young Taoist Priest approaches them and shouts _"Abbot Fong Yuen wants to see you!"_

_Abbot Fong Yuen's room_

Jing and Xiang quickly come to their teacher's room. When they enter, they bow before their teacher and say, with one voice, _"We are here, Teacher!"_

_"My students, rise!" _Fong Yuen orders and his students get up. _"You know of Wao, Governor of Wuchang, right?"_

_"Yes, teacher." _Xiang replies. _"He is very famous in the pugilist world, thanks to his good deeds and wise governance."_

_"That's right!" _Fong Yuen says. _"However, he has been murdered."_

_"By who?!" _Jing, surprised, asks.

_"By Chan and Kuang!"_ Fong Yuen shouts. _"Those two were the ones who prevented me from killing Zhuge Liang. But, now, I have a chance to kill them off. If they are killed, then Zhuge Liang will have no one to protect him from me! I have learned that this assassination has caused much anger in the pugilist world and that the Three Holy Abbots have come out of their seclusion in order to restore justice. This is the right time to organize a pugilist campaign. Jing and Xiang, go to all righteous pugilist sects and call them to join the Great Tao Sect with 50 students each and help us campaign against those two bastards! If all other 11 Righteous Sects agree to join us, we shall have more than 600 men to campaign against Chan and Kuang. Once we have killed those two, we can then frame Zhuge Liang as being the mastermind behind the murder, thus leading all those men against him and killing him!"_

_"Teacher, are you going to lead the campaign by yourself?" _Xiang asks.

_"No."_ Fong Yuen answers. _"You will represent me and lead the Great Tao students. Jing will be the one who will deal with the other Sect leaders in my name. I will stay here."_

_Mao's Inn, Wuchang, Capital of the Southland_

Wong is walking upstairs to meet a representative of Lord Bao. The man is staying the twelfth room of Mao's inn, which is upstairs. Lord Bao and Wong were ingenious in their plan of assassinating Governor Wao. Wong had been sent to work for Wao for more than five years, in order to gain his trust. He then found the right victims to frame, called them in Wao's office, murdered Wao and then framed the murder to Chan and Kuang. Now that Governor Wao is dead, a new Governor is needed for Wuchang. And that Governor will most likely be Lord Bao. As Wong is walking upstairs, he has not noticed that three people, all dressed in black robes and with conical bamboo hats hiding their face, follow him. Those three people are Chan, Kuang and Yang. They spy on Wong, so as to find out why he framed them. When Wong enters the twelfth room, the three heroes come close to the window and hear what Wong and Bao's representative are saying. The man Bao had send to meet Wong is relative young and slim.

_"Master Wong!"_ the man, smiling and laughing, says. _"How are you doing?"_

_"I am alright. How is Lord Bao?"_

_"He is very pleased with your success in murdering Wao and then framing those two idiots. Now that Wao is dead, my Lord will surely replace him as Governor."_

_"Good!"_

_"Master Wong, my Lord is a very good friend with Grand Commander Zhou Yu. In fact, before asking you to murder Wao, my Lord had consulted Zhou Yu. So, my Lord will ask his friend to give you a high position in the military."_

_"Very good! When shall I meet Lord Bao?"_

_"In a week's time, in this room."_

Meanwhile Yang, hearing this conversation, realizes that Chan had not lied to him. He is ready to rush inside the room, but Chan stops him.

_"Yang!"_ Chan whispers. _"If we rush inside the room, we may be able to defeat them, but we will have no evidence."_

_"That's right." _Kuang agrees. _"We must bring the son of Wao, Wuji, to this room when Wong meets with Bao. That way, he will learn the truth and restore our good name." _

So, the three men leave the inn.

_Chongyang Temple, headquarters of the Great Tao Sect_

A Taoist Priest in his mid 30's with short black hair, blue eyes, a handsome face and a muscular body, enters Abbot Fong Yuen's room. He bows before him.

_"Anchang!"_ Fong Yuen says, referring to the Priest. _"Did you bring me any news?"_

_"Yes, teacher. All other 11 Righteous Sects have agreed to join our campaign. We now have over 600 men. The Sect Leaders of the Righteous Sects have agreed to appoint Kang, the eldest of the Three Kung Fu Emperors, and Jing, your representative, as leaders of the Campaign."_

_"Good! All Righteous Sects have joined forces against those two bastards. Great Tao Sect, Buddhist Society Sect, Kongjiing Fist Sect, Invincible Kick Sect, Taijoi Fist Sect, Kung Lang Sect, Snake Sect, Crane Sect, Tiger Sect, Mantis Sect, Nine Swords Sect and Palm of Death Sect have all joined forces against Chan and Kuang! This time, we shall crush them for sure! And then, no one can save Zhuge Liang!"_

_Four days late, outside Wuchang, on a dirt road_

Chan, Kuang and Yang walk on a dirt road outside Wuchang. They are searching for Wuji, son of the Governor Wao. They've heard rumors that he has gone to the Buddhist Society Sect, so they travel there, with the hope of being able to bring Wuji to Mao's inn during Wong's meeting with Lord Bao. As they walk, Kuang asks _"Where is the next village? I really need to rest in an inn."_

_"We do not have the time for this!" _Yang replies. _"We must move fast to meet Wuji before he leaves the Buddhist Society Sect! Not to say that even if we wanted to rest, the closest village is one and a half day walk away."_

_"I feel a bit strange." _Chan says. _"Why are we the only ones using this road? In those past three days, I have seen no people at all."_

Suddenly, the three men hear the sound of many men marching. It seems like hundreds of men are coming towards them.

_"It seems that we will have company!"_ Yang laughs.

_"Shall we run?"_ Kuang asks.

_"No!"_ Chan replies. _"They are not going to recognize us, anyway. And if we run away, it will look suspicious."_

A few seconds late, they see hundreds of men marching on the dirt road, with a lot of them carrying Banners of the Righteous Sects, with many of them having written upon them with black letters _"Campaign against the unorthodox heretics who killed Governor Wao!"_

_"This is bad!"_ Chan whispers. _"We shall not survive this time."_

Suddenly, a middle-aged man with long grey hair and wearing a brown robe, jumps in front of the three heroes and with a swift move with his fists managed to take off all three conical hats, revealing the men's face.

_"I am Heshan, Sect Leader of the Taijoi Fist Sect!"_ the man introduces himself. _"I found suspicious that you hide your face, and I was right. You are the ones who murdered Governor Wao!"_

Hearing this, the more than 600 students of the Righteous Sects form a circle and surround the three men. Jing and Kang, the leaders of the Coalition, approach the three heroes.

_"Buddha bless you."_ Kang says. _"We are here to restore justice for your murder of Governor Wao."_

_"But we did not murder him!" _Chan protests.

_"Do not deny it, scums!"_ Jing shouts.

_"You may be terrible persons, but we of the Righteous Sects cannot be seen as bullying you and winning through sheer numbers, for this would lower the level of the Righteous Sects to that of the Unorthodox Heretical Sects."_ Kang replies. _"So, each Sect will send fighters to fight you on one against one Kung Fu duel."_

_"I will go first against those bastards!"_ Heshan shouts.

_"I will face you."_ Chan replies.

So, the first duel begins. Heshan runs with almost superhuman speed against Chan and is ready to punch his right fist on Chan's chest, but Chan dodges it on the last second. If he had not dodged it, he might have been killed, because the Taijoi Fist Heshan uses is very powerful. Chan tries to kick Heshan, but he kicks Chan's genetic organs and then punches his left fist on Chan's stomach, using the Taijoi Fist. Chan is pushed back and vomits huge amounts of blood.

_"Hahahahahaha! That was easy!"_ Heshan laughs.

Chan, after huge effort, manages to get up. He remembers the words of his teacher, Beggar So, and recites lines from Ancient Martial Arts Manuals. Thus, he is able to gather all his internal strength in his fists. Heshan runs towards him, but Chan attacks him with his right fist. Heshan uses his left hand to block Chan's fist, but the fist, thanks to the profound and immense internal energy of Chan, breaks Heshan's hand, passes through Heshan's defense and hits him on the face. Heshan's nose is broken and his face is red with blood. Although Chan could finish him off, he does not want to do this, since this would make the hate of the Righteous Sects against him even stronger. Heshan is helped by three students of the Taijoi Fist Sect to get up and approaches Chan.

_"Young man, you were able to defeat me!"_ Heshan, with tears in his eyes, says. _"How am I going to face the world?"_

Heshan pulls out a knife and is ready to kill himself, but Chan quickly blocks Heshan's dagger and takes it away from his hands.

_"Master Heshan!"_ Chan shouts. _"I was able to defeat you only because you showed constraint. You should not take it to heart. I should thank you for showing me mercy."_

_"Young Master Chan, you are both skilled in Kung Fu and have a good heart. The Taijoi Fist Sect shall withdraw from the coalition. I hope that we can meet again."_

So, Heshan takes away his 50 students and leaves. Suddenly, a young man in his mid 20's, wearing a blue silk robe, jumps in front of Chan and says _"I am Ruchang, Sect Leader of the Nine Swords Sect. I challenge you, you heretical scums!"_

Yang approaches the man and says _"I, 'Knife' Yang, shall face you!"_

_Good!"_ Ruchang shouts and pulls out two long Swords. Yang pulls out knifes from his sleeves and throws them at Ruchang who, with great speed and skill, deflects them with his swords. Yang then pulls out six knifes, three knifes in each of his hands, and charges at Ruchang. Ruchang is able to defend against Yang's knifes and goes on the offensive. He slices Yang's stomach and chest with his swords. As he is ready to behead Yang, Yang jumps on the air, lands behind Ruchang and kicks him on the back. Ruchang quickly counterattacks, but Yang dodges his attacks.

_"Now, you shall see the power of the Nine Swords!"_ Ruchang shouts. He pulls out seven more long swords, holding five swords with his right hand and four with his left hand. Few people can actually hold so many swords with their hands, and even fewer can attack with skill using so many swords. Ruchang is one of those few people and so he attacks Yang with his nine swords. Yang tries to defend with his six knifes, but soon Ruchang gains the upper hand. But, as Ruchang attacks, he leaves open the left part of his chest, which Yang exploits by stabbing three knifes on the man's chest. Ruchang, bleeding, lets his swords fall on the ground and Yang, with a powerful flying kick, pushes him back. Ruchang, with great effort, gets up, approaches Yang and says _"I am no match for you! You can kill me!"_

_"Why would I want to kill such a great pugilist like you?" _Yang asks. _"Your skills are rare and very powerful and you have a chivalrous character. I only won because of pure luck."_

_"I, Ruchang, admire your skills and your character, so I shall withdraw from the coalition."_

So, Ruchang and his 50 students also leave the coalition. Jing and Xiang, who see this, cannot believe how their teacher's plan is failing. They have to defeat those three men or the entire coalition shall collapse. At the same time, an old man, in his late 60's, with long black hair and beard comes towards Kuang.

_"I am Yonglian, Sect Leader of the Invincible Kick Sect!"_ the man says. _"I challenge you to a duel!"_

_"I accept your challenge." _Kuang, calmly, replies.

The duel begins by Yonglian attacking Kuang with his kicks. Yonglian and his Sect are famous for their kicks. So, it comes to no surprise that Yonglian's kicks are very fast, elegant, powerful and precise at the same time. Yonglian's kicks twenty times Kuang's chest, before Kuang even has a chance to react. Kuang falls, bleeding and injured, on the ground, but he quickly gets up. Kuang tries to use Wai, that is to grab the man by the hair and punch his head on his right knee, but Yonglian avoid Kuang's attack and kicks him thrice on the head. Kuang spits blood and it seems that he cannot match the man's skills. His only chance of surviving the duel is to find a way to break the man's legs. So, Kuang tries to punch his fists on the man's legs, but Yonglian constantly jumps on the air and thus dodges Kuang's attacks. Kuang then, instead of hitting with his fists the man's legs, surprises him and punches his fists on the man's genetic organs. Yonglian screams in pain and Kuang kicks him twice on the face. Yonglian is bleeding and Kuang finds the chance to break the man's legs. He kicks with a very powerful kick Yonglian's right leg, causing him to fall on the ground and then punches ten times his right elbow on the man's leg, breaking it. Four students of the Invincible Kick Sect help their Master get up.

_"Do not think that because you showed me mercy, I shall withdraw!"_ Yonglian shouts as he is taken away by his students.

Xiang pulls out his sword, approaches Chan and says _"In the name of my teacher, the Abbot of the Great Tao Sect, Fong Yuen, I, Xiang, shall face you!"_

_"Good!" _Chan, laughing, shouts. _"Let's see if your improved since our last duel!"_

Xiang attacks Chan with his sword, but Chan dodges all of his attacks. Chan then takes a medium sized wooden stick that is on the ground and says _"I will use this as my weapon, if you do not mind."_

Xiang attacks with ever greater hate and prowess Chan, but Chan uses his stick to block Xiang's sword. As they duel, Chan recites lines from Ancient Martial Arts Manuals and transfers his internal energy to the stick, making it far more powerful. So powerful that after a few minutes of dueling, Chan's stick breaks Xiang's sword. Xiang cannot believe. As Xiang is ready to attack him unarmed, Kang, Rong and Jiajing, the Three Kung Fu Emperors, stop him.

_"Buddha bless you."_ Kang says. _"Brother Xiang, allow us three to deal with those men."_

_"Alright, Abbots." _Xiang replies and leaves.

_I, Abbot Kang, shall face you, Young Master Chan."_ Kang, calmly, says. _"My brother, Abbot Rong, shall face Young Master Yang and my other brother, Jiajing, shall face Young Master Kuang."_

_"Alright." _Chan replies.

And so, the duel that will decide the fate of the pugilist campaign begins. Kang gathers all of his immense internal energy and shouts _"Red Tiger Fists!"_. Suddenly, four red Tigers come out of Kang's palms and explode near Chan, causing him to fall back with serious injuries and bleeding. Abbot Kang is the only known pugilist to have reached such a high level of internal energy skills that he can perform superhuman deeds. He used his internal energy to create those Tigers.

At the same time, Yang throws knifes from his sleeves at Rong, but he stops them while on the air, thanks to his immense internal strength, and throws them back at Yang, who is barely able to avoid them. Meanwhile, Kuang tries to kick Jiajing, but the Abbot transfers his internal energy to his palms and then punches his right palm on Kuang's chest, sending him flying on Chan, who is ready, after great effort, to get up. Kuang falls upon Chan and so the two men are on the ground. They try to get up, but Rong, with superhuman speed and without Yang even noticing it, grabs Yang and throws him upon them.

_"Those...those...guys...are...are..really Kung Fu Emperors."_ Chan tries to say. _"They deserve their title!"_

As the Three Abbot approach them, suddenly and almost out of nowhere, a woman jumps into the circle formed by the Righteous Sects and lands in from on the Abbots. The woman is young, 18 years old, and very, very beautiful, with long black hair, a soft skin and a handsome face that tempts even holy men. She has green eyes and when she looks at you, you are almost blinded by her beauty. She wears an ethereal white cloak.

_"No one is going to harm them."_ the woman, with a soft voice, says. _"You all think that you are good and have taken the title of 'Righteous Sects' , but many of you commit atrocities far worse than those that you call 'heretical' and 'unorthodox'." _

_"Buddha bless you!"_ Kang replies. _"Please, get out of our way."_

_"What if I do not?"_

_"Then, we will have to offend you!"_

Kang uses again his 'Red Tiger Fists'. Four red Tigers come out of his palms and run towards the woman, but she shouts _"Yellow Crane Fists!"_ and four yellow Cranes come out of her palms. The Tigers and Cranes collide and explode. Kang, and all other pugilists, are left stunned. Up until that moment, the only known person to be able to perform such superhuman deeds through the use of internal energy was Kang. But now a mysterious woman is able to use her internal energy in a way that matches and equals that of the greatest Chinese Kung Fu Master, Abbot Kang. The Three Holy Abbots retreat, but Jing leads twenty Taoists Priests against the woman and orders _"Men, use the 'Flying Swords' technique!"_

Indeed, the twenty Taoists form a circle and throw their swords, with immense speed, at the woman, but she stops them on the air and then, using her internal strength, throws them back at the Taoists, killing all of them except for Jing who, thanks to his great Qinggong skill, is able to dodge the sword that was thrown against him. Seeing this, more than 70 students from the Kung Lang Sect, Snake Sect and Kongjiing Fist Sect charge against her, but she throws with immense speed poison darts against them, killing more than thirty of them. The surviving students, seeing this, decide to retreat instead of risking their lives. Seeing that they cannot defeat the woman, one after the other, the Righteous Sects start retreating. The woman finds the chance to grab Chan, Kuang and Yang and takes them away.


End file.
